**6. Life cycle of medical equipment**

Users and technical staff have the obligation to maintain medical equipment at a level of safety as high as possible, compared to other types of usual equipment. Most complex medical equipment works, for example, in the intensive care unit. They have an electrical connection that in certain situations of first defect can create injuries or even death of the patient by electric shock. Patients connected to such medical equipment are not able to respond to dangerous conditions or pain. Other types of medical equipment work to support life, and a problem, sometimes even minor in some respects, can lead to the death of the patient when the equipment is used incorrectly or is poorly maintained. The life cycle of medical equipment, from the point of view of media technology management, comprises 4 stages and 9 themes according to current standards (**Figure 3**) [17–20].

An important stage in the life of medical equipment is that of maintenance and repairs that involve certain assumptions and challenges.

Some assumptions are as follows:

