The worsening environment, overwhelming stress, little exercise, and other factors have increased fatalities from sudden cardiac deaths (SCD). The automated external defibrillator (AED) has been developed to help those experiencing sudden cardiac arrest. It is an advanced yet easy-to-operate medical device that can analyze the heart’s rhythm and, if necessary, deliver an electrical shock, or defibrillation, helping the heart re-establish an effective rhythm. [1] 

Sadly, AEDs have long been treated as machines that demand the experience of usage, causing many unnecessary deaths. To solve the problem, Mindray AED, equipped with state-of-the-art technologies and extraordinary ease-of-use, has gained a high reputation in the industry. But the essential machines should accompany proper maintenance to ensure they are ready to deliver a life-saving shock in time. So to know more about the maintenance of AED, check this out.

The Importance of Maintaining AED:

Around the world, sudden and unexpected cardiac death is the major culprit of death, responding for 17 million deaths each year, with sudden cardiac deaths (SCD) accounting for 25%. [2] However, a significant proportion of SCD deaths could be avoided by timely rescue with the help of an AED. 

Defibrillation, the administration of electric shocks to the heart to restore normal heart rhythm in persons who are experiencing cardiac arrest or whose heart function is endangered because of severe arrhythmia (abnormality of heart rhythm), is proven to be an effective way to save SCA patients. And that is what AED works for.

Time is of the essence in rescuing the patients since SCA happens without warning and requires immediate emergency treatment. Statistics suggest that for each minute defibrillation is delayed, the odds of survival are reduced by approximately 10%. [3] Since AED is crucial in helping SCA patients, maintaining AED becomes equally important to ensure that it is always in working order and ready for use in an emergency. The measures include replacing expired or used electrodes on the AED, testing the capacity of the batteries regularly, and cleaning the AED’s appearance to remove contamination. AEDs are important life-saving equipment and must be properly maintained to ensure they are accessible and ready to use when an emergency arises. The cost of human life leaves no room for AED failure.

Last but not least, as we have mentioned above, SCD happens suddenly and unexpectedly, which demands a well-maintained AED to facilitate its readiness to deal with unexpected situations. It is recommended that monthly visual inspections are performed to ensure the AEDs are ready for use when needed.  

How to Maintain Mindray AED with AED-AlertTM 2.0 System?

Mindray AEDs can be inspected with the help of the AED-AlertTM 2.0 system according to the general guidelines to accelerate the checking.

Mindray Remote Management Software

The internal objects should be checked periodically to ensure their performance. However, maintaining a large AED fleet can be energy-consuming. To solve this problem and facilitate the checking process, Mindray provides remote management software, increasing the accuracy and efficiency of Mindray AED internal checking and ensuring their functionality.

This software makes maintaining and managing Mindray AED machines more efficient and intelligent. Compared to the traditional way of inspecting the interior of AEDs, the remote management software boasts the following features:

Complete visibility of all the information

Before every maintenance, you can get a clear overview of the entire AED fleet just from the home page of the AED-Alert managing tool. The status bar and readiness map could straightforwardly visualize the overall status of the entire AED fleet. What’s more, it detects whether an AED is in good condition and allows AED managers to monitor the status of consumables, like the battery’s remaining capacity and expiration date of the components, helping you replace them in time to guarantee them on standby for any emergency. If any device’s status changes, the AED-Alert 2.0 system will automatically alert you through emails.

In short, with the AED-Alert system, you can get the below information without walking out of your office:

• AED self-test results and log review
• Map and photo overview that indicates the AED’s locations
• Device and configuration information

Wi-Fi/4G transmission with IoT technology

AED-AlertTM 2.0 stores data on the Cloud server and manages AED fleets through a Wi-Fi/4G network, enabling more efficient and in-time management. You can access the AED-AlertTM 2.0 from any browser at any time and anywhere to check the status of your AED fleet.

Steps to maintain AEDs with Mindray AED-AlertTM 2.0 System:

• Check the daily self-status report of AED devices regularly to ensure it is functioning correctly.
• Follow the map displayed on the AED-AlertTM 2.0 system to make sure the device is accessible during an emergency.
• Check the notification about AED and AED pads’ expiration.
• Check the AED devices’ battery capacity and change them in time for emergent use.

Above all, with AED-AlertTM 2.0 system to remotely connect every individual AED device, you will achieve efficient AED fleet management, maximizing the result with less effort.

Conclusion

The staggering fatalities caused by SCA indicate that keeping an AED is necessary. When sudden cases happen, time is the determining factor in snatching the SCA victim from the jaws of death. And Mindray AED is one of the most effective tools available to bystanders for restarting the heart of patients in SCA because it is implemented with ResQNaviTM, technology that can guide you through the rescue process step by step. Therefore, nearly everyone, even the inexperienced, can operate it correctly. 

The maintenance of AED is not tricky, either; only if you have followed the proper procedures can you ensure that the device is always in good working order in case of an emergency. This article provides a few helpful tips on maintaining your Mindray AED defibrillator. If you want to know more about Mindray AED or the maintenance of AED, stay up-to-date on the latest in AED maintenance, and stay connected to the blog.

References

[1] What is AED? Available at: https://www.redcross.org/take-a-class/aed/using-an-aed/what-is-aed (Accessed: 6 May 2022)

[2] Sudden Cardiac Death and Arrhythmias. Journal List. Arrhythm Electrophysiol Rev. v.7(2); 2018 Jun. PMC6020177. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6020177/ (Accessed: 6 May 2022)

[3] What is AED? Available at: https://www.redcross.org/take-a-class/aed/using-an-aed/what-is-aed (Accessed: 6 May 2022)