Appropriate medical technology for developing countries: experience from CME Nyankunde

Many developing countries find themselves flooded with sophisticated medical equipment that they can neither maintain nor repair. After several months, the equipment breaks down due to wear and tear. Problems start with lack of technically qualified staff. It is most painful when you visit hospitals and there is nobody who can explain to you what is wrong with out-of-service equipment. As a consequence, on one hand, people go round in circles when they have to buy new equipment, knowing that it will be unusable soon. With donations on the other hand, we are in a dilemma. It is not easy to influence the nature of such gifts, though it would be very helpful indeed if donors could provide comprehensive technical documentation, sufficient spare-parts and user and maintenance training. Very often no local agents are available. Thus, prolonging the lifetime of equipment remains a priority. This seminar on appropriate technology for developing countries will hopefully give strong impetus to our work at CME Nyankunde and the work of many other health structures in developing countries.