Client Overview
Royal Camperdown Medical Centre is a 450-bed public hospital located in the inner-west Sydney suburb of Camperdown. As one of New South Wales' major teaching hospitals, it employs over 3,500 clinical and support staff and operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The facility houses more than 3,000 individual electrical items, ranging from critical medical devices and diagnostic equipment to standard office appliances, kitchen equipment, and maintenance tools.
The Challenge
Healthcare facilities present unique compliance challenges. Unlike a standard office environment, you cannot simply walk into a ward and start testing equipment. Patient care cannot be interrupted, infection control protocols must be observed, and many items require specialist knowledge to safely disconnect and test. The hospital's facilities manager, Sarah Nguyen, explained that previous testing providers had caused significant disruption to clinical operations, with staff complaining that testers were in the way during critical care procedures.
Additionally, the hospital's equipment inventory included items classified under multiple AS/NZS 3760 categories. Standard patient appliances required testing every 12 months in benign environments, while equipment in kitchens, laundries, and workshops needed six-monthly testing. Medical-grade equipment required coordination with the biomedical engineering department to ensure testing did not interfere with calibration schedules. The hospital had struggled to achieve compliance rates above 80 percent with previous providers.
Our Solution
We designed a purpose-built after-hours testing program that addressed the hospital's unique operational requirements:
After-Hours Scheduling: All testing is conducted between 8:00 PM and 6:00 AM on weeknights, with additional weekend sessions for high-traffic areas. This schedule ensures zero disruption to daytime clinical operations, visiting hours, and staff workflows.
Specialised Healthcare Protocols: Our technicians are trained in healthcare-specific protocols including infection control procedures, clean room protocols, and the safe handling of medical equipment. All technicians hold current Working with Children Checks and National Police Checks as required for hospital environments.
Phased Department Rollout: Rather than attempting to test the entire facility at once, we implemented a phased approach targeting specific departments each night. Ward-by-ward scheduling ensures that no area is visited more frequently than necessary, and department heads receive advance notification of testing dates.
Biomedical Coordination: We work directly with the hospital's biomedical engineering team to schedule testing of medical-adjacent equipment. Items requiring specialist handling are tested in coordination with biomedical technicians, ensuring calibration and safety testing are complementary rather than conflicting.
Results
Since implementing the after-hours program in January 2024, Royal Camperdown Medical Centre has achieved and maintained 100 percent compliance across all 3,000+ electrical items. For the first time in the hospital's history, every item has a current, valid test tag, and the digital asset register is fully populated with complete test records.
Clinical staff satisfaction with the testing process has improved dramatically. In an internal survey conducted six months after implementation, 94 percent of ward managers reported no disruption to patient care from testing activities, compared to just 45 percent with the previous provider. The facilities team now receives weekly compliance dashboards showing real-time status across all departments.
During a NSW Health audit in July 2024, the hospital received zero findings related to portable electrical equipment compliance, a first for the facility.
Key Metrics
- 3,000+ items tested and tracked across the entire facility
- 100% compliance rate achieved and maintained
- Zero disruption to clinical operations during testing
- After-hours testing between 8 PM and 6 AM
- 94% staff satisfaction with testing process
- Zero audit findings on NSW Health compliance audit
Client Quote
"We had resigned ourselves to the idea that 80 percent compliance was the best we could hope for in a hospital environment. Our new after-hours program has completely changed that. We hit 100 percent compliance for the first time ever, and our clinical staff barely notice the testing happening. The coordination with our biomedical team has been seamless. It is exactly what a healthcare facility needs."
�" Sarah Nguyen, Facilities Manager, Royal Camperdown Medical Centre, Camperdown NSW