An evidence-based approach to developing a training programme for the maintenance of oxygen concentrators in low-resource settings

Oxygen concentrators are an appropriate and low-cost technology for supplying medical oxygen in low-resource settings; however some maintenance and occasional repairs are required to optimise their longevity. Through a skillmapping analysis based on historical concentrator repair logs, we identified 31 basic technician skills that would be sufficient for the repair of over 90% of observed oxygen concentrator failures as well as for routine preventive maintenance. Most of these skills are drawn from the library of Biomedical Technician Assistant skills developed by the Developing World Healthcare Technologies Lab and Engineering World Health. We use this skill-mapping analysis to propose an evidence-based training curriculum specifically tailored to the maintenance of oxygen concentrators in low-resource settings.