ABSTRACT This study develops an integrated maintenance strategy for hospital medical equipment using a multi‐diagnostic approach based on overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), mean time to repair (MTTR), mean time between failure (MTBF), failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA), and root cause analysis (RCA). Operational data and staff interviews were collected from a resource‐limited and war‐affected military hospital in Taiz, Yemen, focusing on four critical devices: MRI, X‐ray, computed radiography (CR), and ultrasonography. For the first time, this study standardizes operational historical records of medical devices to align with OEE analysis. Valued findings revealed severe issues with MRI equipment, including a low OEE of 59% and an extremely large MTTR of almost 2 weeks per fault repair, which magnified substantial reliability concerns and managerial inefficiencies. Risk priority number (RPN) analysis emphasized the need for customized maintenance plans tailored to each medical device's vulnerabilities and criticality. RCA further inferred that most failures are rooted in managerial issues such as power disconnections, unskilled operators and technicians, and a shortage of spare parts. Based on these insights, the study recommends implementing device‐specific maintenance protocols, targeted staff training, and investment in technical capacity. The proposed proactive framework enhances the reliability, lifespan, and performance of medical devices in healthcare environments and is applicable to both outsourced and in‐house maintenance systems. Hospitals lacking structured maintenance systems pay a painful penalty in terms of increased operational costs, lower patient satisfaction, and reputational decline.
Mekhlafi et al. (2026) studied this question.
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