Assessment of Electrical Safety of Patient-Connected Medical Equipment in Intensive Care Units in Ogun State

Electrical safety of patient-connected medical equipment in intensive care units is critical for preventing microshock and macroshock injuries in critically ill patients, yet electrical safety testing programmes for ICU equipment are rarely systematically implemented in Nigerian hospitals. This study assesses the electrical safety of patient-connected medical equipment in intensive care units at three hospitals in Ogun State, including one tertiary and two secondary facilities. Electrical safety testing was performed on patient monitors, infusion pumps, ventilators, and physiotherapy equipment using a Rigel 288 electrical safety analyser. Tests conducted included earth bond resistance, protective earth continuity, enclosure leakage current, applied part leakage current, and patient leakage current, following IEC 60601-1 test procedure specifications. A total of forty-eight equipment items were tested. Results show that six (12.5%) items failed protective earth continuity testing, with measured resistance exceeding the 0.1-ohm IEC 60601-1 limit. Eight items (16.7%) failed applied part leakage current limits. Four items showed damaged power supply cables with exposed conductors that had not been flagged by clinical staff. Failure rates were significantly higher at the secondary facilities than the tertiary facility, where a part-time biomedical technologist was present. None of the three facilities had a documented periodic electrical safety testing programme. The study identifies absence of electrical safety testing as a systemic patient safety risk and recommends adoption of an annual testing schedule, dedicated biomedical engineering staffing, and equipment quarantine procedures for items failing safety tests. Keywords: electrical safety, ICU equipment, leakage current, IEC 60601-1, Ogun State.