Evaluation of the impact of a new biomedical equipment technician curriculum in Rwanda

The Developing World Healthcare Technology Laboratory (DHTLab) at Duke University recently developed the first evidence-based approach to training technicians to repair and maintain medical equipment in resource-poor settings, the BTA program. In this paper we describe a matched-pair study of hospitals with and without a BTA trained technician in Rwanda. Hospitals without a BTA trained technician had 54% more out-of-service equipment (14.8%) in critical clinical areas than hospitals with BTA trained technicians (9.6%). We conclude that the new curriculum has a significant impact on the healthcare of the hospitals.