How long should a stretcher last?

You’ve just got approval to purchase a new stretcher for your ward, but how long should it last for?

Well, patient trolleys and stretchers are an expensive capital purchase for a long-term investment and are much like buying your own fleet of motor vehicles. It is often said that if you never serviced your car, how long would it take before there was a critical breakdown or harmful failure?

In the event of not being able to provide evidence of any servicing, would your car warranties hold up? 

The best operating life of your stretchers comes down to two main factors – either the department or facility is small with very low transportation requirement and patient throughput, or the product is subjected to a periodic maintenance schedule that checks, adjusts or replaces broken or worn parts.

What is the expected life of a stretcher?

Typically, in medical organisations, capital equipment is purchased and depreciated over 10 years. This is considered a fair life for a patient stretcher given the demanding and continuous use that the products are expected to deliver. After this point in time, even though the product itself may appear to be sound, it is important to note that the unit will never feel or be operating as smoothly and efficiently as when it was new. 

As framework and parts age, the inherent risk of breakdowns may increase. Any ongoing refinements, new technology improvements or changes to the product design over this long term are normally not reflected in old or existing equipment.

What are the main problems that can happen on stretchers? 

Depending on the frequency of use, normal wear and tear in a patient stretcher starts at the wheels. The castors carry both the weight of both the stretcher and patient over many flooring surface types. The constant turning, twisting and vibration may cause the brake or steering mechanisms to change in adjustment and wheel roller bearings to eventually wear out. The average life expectancy of patient trolley castors is about 3 - 5 years. This can vary substantially based on the surface type (exposed concrete versus smooth vinyl) or the level of use (small day clinics versus large, busy hospital departments). 

The brake and steer system may also require adjustment from time to time, this is best cared for in routine maintenance checks. Other items subject to high wear and tear are hydraulic or gas struts, side rail pivots and locks, mattresses, and some electronic components such as handsets and batteries. All of this is easily covered off in a regular servicing plan which will help to extend the overall service life of the stretcher.

When should I replace a stretcher? 

You may be thinking, when should a stretcher retire? 

It’s good practice to review the age and daily use expectations on your capital equipment, deciding when to make the right call to replace or upgrade. It is not prudent to continue to operate for many years over the expected lifetimes of capital equipment, until the age of the unit eventually results in major breakdown (or indeed a run of small issues). The downtime caused by your product being out of service or for any other maintenance issues run the risk of accidental harm to either staff or patients that no longer have the right tools for their job. 

Your engineering or maintenance personnel are experienced at monitoring this type of equipment and can help with the decision process to continue funding repair versus starting from new again. Given how long the timeline can be for new funding approval, it is best to start working through the process well in advance, instead of waiting until sudden product failure causes urgent decisions or forced spending. This may result in rushed and uninformed decisions which can have an impact on both staff well-being and organisational efficiency for many years to come.

Where can I find my MODSEL service checklist?

The most common problems encountered with mobile stretchers involve side rails not locking, wheel locks and/or brakes not functioning or engaging correctly, or frame/structural components failing. Loss of functionality could cause the platform surface to tilt, spilling the patient onto the floor. 

Routine inspection of casters, side rails, and other frame components can usually prevent these problems.

After each (12) twelve months of use, the stretcher must be checked in accordance with our recommended Service Checklist.

You can find your MODSEL approved Service Checklist under your products user guide on our website.