Your complete guide to hospitals and health care facility maintenance

Hospitals and other health care facilities are high-traffic areas that experience a great deal of wear and tear over the years. To make sure these spaces remain consistently safe and serviceable, these facilities require sufficient maintenance. Hospitals and health care maintenance programs consist of plans that detail how to effectively maintain hospitals and other facilities in this industry.

In addition to addressing existing issues with the property, these programs could also entail preventative maintenance. This helps minimise the risk of future problems by fixing smaller ones before they have the chance to worsen and then require extensive emergency maintenance. It functions similarly to vehicle maintenance; your facilities will perform their best with regular maintenance checks much the way a regularly-serviced vehicle would.
Consistent hospital and health care building maintenance also helps keep these facilities in excellent condition while saving money in the long term. These programs can achieve this through:

• Full facility refurbishment
• Interior and exterior painting services that protect all surfaces
• Landscaping and grounds maintenance
• Repairs to fix damage to walls, floors, and ceilings
• Replacing or reconditioning structural timber or concrete
• Plumbing and electrical system repairs
• Water damage repair and rust removal

Getting health care facility maintenance contracts

Hospitals and health care maintenance contracts are legal agreements between contractors and facility managers to guarantee consistent maintenance. A hospitals and health care maintenance contract will detail the scheduling, costs, and specific tasks required to properly maintain a hospital or other health care facility.

Starting one of these contracts will involve an on-site inspection with prospective service providers. The contractor will then develop an accurate quote that indicates what maintenance tasks they'll perform. After finalising the details and once both parties sign the contract, work can begin.

Hospitals and other facilities may want to build a team of permanent staff in-house to maintain their facilities. However, outsourcing may be in their best interests, depending on their needs.

Your facilities' needs will dictate whether you need in-house or outsourced hospitals and health care maintenance. Hospitals may rely on a combination of in-house and outsourced teams to resolve a wide range of potential issues, both big and small.

Generally, whether in-house or outsourced maintenance is best will come down to what types of jobs you need performed. In-house teams may provide everyday maintenance that keeps health care facilities consistently clean, safe, and comfortable for all occupants. On the other hand, when handling larger jobs, you may want to free up in-house teams to enable them to focus on their traditional duties. To facilitate this, you can work with specialists who know how to develop a clear plan for maintaining hospitals and other health care environments.

Outsourced building maintenance can also help alleviate administrative burdens, particularly around hiring staff and some of the potential legal risks associated with in-house maintenance. If you're dealing with anything that's structural in nature or that comes with high levels of risk, such as working at great heights, you're often better off outsourcing this work to experienced experts.

Working with a service provider on a case-by-case basis may be beneficial for you. But it depends on your properties' demands and management style. However, the freedom of using contractors for once-off maintenance tasks may not be the most cost-effective setup. The following is a quick overview of the differences between once-off projects and long-term contracts.

Once-off projects

Many hospital and other health care facility managers prefer working with once-off contractors. For instance, when managing a newly constructed facility, managers may not feel the need to sign up for a lengthy maintenance contract.

The Pros

Contracting multiple hospital and health care building maintenance contractors can help you assess how compatible these companies are before forming a long-term partnership. By working with these professionals on shorter projects, you'll be able to learn about their quality of workmanship and service.

If you require emergency repairs, once-off work can help you address these problems without the need for long-term contracts.

The Cons

Although once-off projects may appear to keep costs lower, they can result in overlooked preventative maintenance, which leads to more costly fixes and emergency repairs. Facility managers may also lose out on potential discounts available from forming long-term contracts with maintenance providers.

Once-off contractors also come with certain fly-by-night risks. These may include leaving before work is complete or producing substandard results.

With once-off contractors, you would need to manage a group of independent experts. That entails the administrative burden of finding and dealing with these contractors. Depending too much on once-off work also comes with increased manager responsibility due to the need to keep track of what requires repairs and maintenance. You would also need to understand the expenses and tasks involved.

Health care facility maintenance contracts

The freedom of once-off projects may make them tempting. But health care maintenance contracts provide additional peace of mind and security.

The Pros

Hospital and health care facility maintenance contracts can help you stay within your budget by preventing unplanned or emergency repairs. In turn, you can save as much as thousands of dollars while making sure your facilities continue to function the way they should. If something goes wrong with maintenance services at any point, a reliable provider will also fix them at no extra cost to you.

Facilities with long-term contracts also benefit from reduced financial and legal risk. Contractors generally guarantee high-quality work as they intend to work with you on a long-term basis. A good contractor will have a team of licensed tradesmen. So they'll carry the legal risk for every job they complete.

The Cons

Working with a provider may make some facility managers feel as though they're locked in a contract. But the fact is that you can include a renewal or cancellation clause in your contract. This enables you to leave if you're unhappy with the contractor.

Signing a maintenance contract typically leads to a long-term relationship. This is often beneficial as contractors come to know exactly what facilities need over time and provide consistent services. But some facility managers may want to maintain a more transactional relationship.

In most cases, working with a maintenance contractor that offers end-to-end maintenance services will help reduce manager workload. It also serves as a single point of contact to meet all maintenance needs. Subsequently, you'll benefit from preventative maintenance that eliminates the need for emergency repairs. It ensures your property is in consistently good condition. In the process, you'll save more money while minimising the disruption to patients and staff.

You should experience peace of mind when working with a hospitals and health care maintenance provider. The right contractor will clearly indicate what types of services you require years ahead of time. They’ll also make suggestions based on your budget. To make the best selection, you need to know what to look for in the ideal candidate.

To help you find the right fit, the following are some tips for selecting contractors:

1. Try to find a provider offering all-in-one solutions

Providers must be a one-stop-shop for everything from electrics and plumbing to wall and ceiling repairs. By providing a comprehensive solution, they will effectively eliminate the need to work with multiple maintenance providers.

2. Confirm your vendor's qualifications, experience, and expertise

Potential maintenance contractors should be fully qualified. They should also be licensed, police-checked, and registered with all relevant bodies. In addition, the contractor should be fully insured, with coverage for both their teams and the work itself.

3. Schedule work based on the needs of patients and staff

To minimise disruption, providers need to accommodate the specific requirements of the facility they service. For example, if you're refurbishing an entire wing of a hospital, the job must be completed in a way that doesn't hinder staff's ability to efficiently navigate the facility or provide care to patients.

4. Only choose a provider with glowing testimonials

Positive testimonials from previous or current long-term clients will clearly indicate that the provider is consistently dependable and delivers optimal results in a timely manner. You can ask providers about similar facilities they've worked within the health care industry. Then contact the property managers for a referral.

5. Find out about exclusions lists

The ideal provider will also be able to take on certain maintenance challenges that other companies may not tackle. Certain tasks may wind up on companies' exclusions list to indicate that they don't perform these services. However, some providers may have the experience and resources needed to handle nearly any situation. For instance, at First Response, we have everything needed to complete nearly any type of maintenance task. We also have unparalleled expertise and trust in our teams.

When transitioning to a new hospital and health care facility maintenance provider or beginning a new preventative maintenance plan, there are certain considerations to keep in mind. Once you've found the right contractor to work with, beginning a contract and maintenance work will entail the following steps:

1. Request an on-site building assessment: Your potential maintenance provider should visit your facility and assess its unique maintenance requirements. This is vital for determining the scope of the maintenance program.
2. Negotiate the hospitals and health care maintenance contract. The next step is to negotiate for a flexible and transparent contract. Make sure it features an exit clause that works in your favour.
3. Work begins. The maintenance provider should then schedule a meeting to inspect for defects. You'll receive an invoice once all maintenance tasks are complete, and you'll receive warranty documentation upon receipt of payment.
4. Assess provider value. Once a few months have passed in your contract, evaluate your experience with your provider. If you feel that work was substandard or maintenance caused any problems for patients, visitors, or staff, record these issues and discuss them with your provider.
5. Trigger the contract's exit clause if the provider fails to perform. If the provider fails to meet your standards and expectations, you should always bring this up to them. The provider may work to correct any mistakes and prevent issues from developing in the future. If the contractor still continues to underperform, take advantage of the contract's exit clause and make the switch to a new provider.

Reliable preventative maintenance programs are critical for helping hospitals and health care facilities stay in good shape and maintain a safe and healthy environment for all occupants. To reduce your administrative burden and get the best possible results from your maintenance program, turn to an all-in-one hospitals and health care maintenance provider.

The experts at First Response have worked with many hospital and health care facility managers to properly maintain their properties. While we offer once-off projects and emergency repair services for these facilities, our partners often enjoy working with us through long-term contracts for maintenance services. By developing a close, long-term relationship, we can learn every aspect of your facility and maintenance requirements to provide consistently reliable service.

If you would like to find out more about our solutions and how they can help you maintain your hospital or health care facility, book a free site assessment with us today.