Spare parts for medical devices are crucial to maintaining uninterrupted service delivery in health care facilities. However, the public procurement of spare parts for medical devices is constrained by reactive and ad hoc purchasing decisions, often due to a lack of system-wide historical data on what spare parts are needed, in what quantities, and when. Without a data-driven, coordinated procurement strategy, purchasing decisions remain fragmented and inconsistent, limiting the ability to achieve economies of scale, ensure quality, or maintain timely availability of spare parts across the health system.

To address this challenge, PATH developed a spare parts quantification and costing tool by engaging biomedical engineers in Kenya to build consensus around a standardized list of essential spare parts and the estimated annual frequency of use. The tool equips budget managers at health facilities and within county governments and the national Ministry of Health with more accurate system-wide estimates of annual spare parts demand and costs.