Tuberculosis Laboratory Maintenance Plan (LMP) for preventive and routine maintenance of laboratory equipment: expert opinion of the European Tuberculosis Laboratory Initiative 2017

This technical guiding document has been developed by core group members of the European Tuberculosis (TB) Laboratory Initiative to provide practical guidance for planning and implementing equipment maintenance in TB laboratories in the World Health Organization (WHO) European Region. It will help to ensure accurate and uninterrupted laboratory services, cost-efficient use and extended lifetime of equipment, and increased laboratory safety. Correct functioning of (bio)safety equipment is important for ensuring the safe handling and manipulation of infectious or chemical materials. Therefore, the calibration, certification and regular maintenance of laboratory equipment is essential. The TB laboratory maintenance plan provides a table for each key piece of laboratory equipment for use in organizing regular maintenance and providing answers to the four following questions. Who is responsible? When should it be done? What activity is necessary? Which laboratory equipment? The “who” category helps to identify the responsible person and indicates whether the maintenance activity can be done by a laboratory worker or whether a certified and specialized engineer is needed. The time interval between each maintenance activity is described under the “when” category for each piece of equipment. The “what” and “which” categories describe the necessary maintenance activities needed for each item of equipment. This expert opinion is intended for use as a bench aid in the WHO European Region for equipment maintenance organization in the laboratory and to help laboratory managers, programme managers, implementing partners and donors in planning and calculating the necessary budgets for equipment routine maintenance, regular service and spare parts and human resources.