Assessment Of The Radiological Equipment Breakdown On Radiographers (a Case Study Of Unth, Esutth, Nohe, Enugu State)

It has been observed that during x-ray equipment failure, radiographers seem not to know what to do, there is usually a display of distress observed by radiographers and an immediate call for the services of a technician is made by the radiographers. This work is aimed at assessing the radiological equipment breakdown on radiographers, in knowing their equipments, knowing what they do when an equipment fails, assessing their capability in fixing simple faults and assessing their knowledge on quality assurance testing. Questionnaires were shared to the various government hospitals in UNTH(Ituku Ozalla), ESUTTH (Parklane), and NOHE Enugu state. Data were collected and analysed and it was realized that radiographers were familiar with their equipment and they possessed basic knowledge in troubleshooting and quality assurance but they lacked practice in troubleshooting and quality assurance testing, and basic facilities used in maintaining x-ray equipment failures such as faults and maintenance logbooks and simple tools used in carrying out quality assurance testing and troubleshooting were unavailable in  the various departments.

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER THREE:  RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

5.0 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATION AND CONCLUSION 

 

An x-ray machine is equipment that provides the source of x-rays which utilizes electromagnetic radiation to penetrate objects to produce images or used in therapy to treat cancers and other diseases1. The earliest equipment used in the production of x-rays was the Crookes tube, a discharge tube invented in 1875 and used by Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen, who discovered x-rays using this simple equipment in 1895. Crookes tubes created free electrons by ionisation of the residual air in the tube by a high DC voltage of between a 10 kilovolts and 100kilovolts, this voltage accelerated the electrons coming from the cathode to a high enough velocity that created x-rays when they struck the glass wall of the tube. In 1913, William D Coolidge invented the Coolidge tube, which consisted of a vacuum tube (an evacuated tube) and a hot cathode that permitted current to flow into the tube, this allowed the continuous production of x-rays. The Coolidge tube was the first x-ray tube and it stands as the model in which all x-ray tubes for medical applications are based. As years passed, the x-ray equipment was modified in various ways to ensure optimum output and to ensure the safety of the patient and the operator.

An x-ray machine is a complex device used in a variety of circumstances around the world. With the ability of x-rays to penetrate hard objects, they are used for purposes such as in the medical community to check for fractures of bones or pathologies within the body and in airport security checkpoints to see into bags for concealed weapons or other contrabands2. Regardless of the type of x-ray equipment, there are three major components that are vital to the inner workings of an x-ray machine, and they include;

The X-ray tube contains either a filament or cathode emitter that expels accelerated electrons and leads them to a metal anode, where current is now flowing. The electrons that have been emitted toward the anode make up an electron beam. The beam hits a focal point in the anode, where a small percentage is converted into X-ray photons. The photons are discharged in all directions, and once the control unit is put to use, the adjusted currents and voltage result in a beam of X-rays that is projected onto a visible substance. An X-ray machine essentially acts as a camera, but without the visible light. Instead, it uses the X-rays that were produced to expose the film. X-rays use electromagnetic waves that can break through several layers due to the energy held inside of them. If the body is being X-rayed, the skin tissue will not absorb the waves coming from the X-ray but the dense parts of the body will, which is why bones, tendons and ligaments are able to be examined4.

An equipment failure can be defined as a cessation of normal operation of the equipment; it is a breakdown or decline in the performance of equipment, or an occasion when something stops working adequately5. Such equipment failure could be due to different causes ranging from simple broken wires in the generator hand switch cable and faults in plugs and switches to oil leakage in the x-ray tube or a crooked or distorted anode in the anode tube.

Effects of equipment failure

These include: 

• Poor quality output leading to increased patient waiting time and hampers effective diagnosis

• Total disruption of work in the x-ray department leading to financial loss in the department and delayed diagnosis of pathologies in patients.

• Pose serious mechanical risks to the patient and operator such as injuries or even death.

• Inadvertent radiation exposure to the patient and the operator6.

Usually, it is the duty of equipment engineers to fix such problems, but before they arrive at the x-ray department to ascertain the exact fault of the machine and effect repairs, a lot of time is lost. However before the arrival of the engineers, the radiographer should be able to ascertain the faults characteristics and malfunctioning component for speedy repairs. Therefore radiographers should have knowledge on how to handle minor equipment faults and the ability to manage such equipment is through quality assurance tests and troubleshooting.  The sophistication in radiological equipment has brought with it difficulty in acquisition and maintenance. Radiographers take it for granted that someone else checks imaging equipment to ensure it is in good working order. However, checking equipment safety is a task that all radiographers should pay attention to because it relates directly to patient care and risk management