RECORD KEEPING
Each organization/company that employs PAS Vr. units should assign a staff member
to be responsible for care and maintenance. A log should be established to record the
checking, calibration and maintenance activities on each unit. Testers using the units
should be required to report any problems with the units to the proper staff member
who should record the problems in the log. If a unit is dropped or is damaged in some
other way this should be entered in the log so that the information can be forwarded to
the manufacturer along with the unit for repair. The log will record the life history of the
units and should be carefully maintained since it may be subpoenaed if the use of the
PAS Vr. is challenged.
To ensure that there is a record that these sensitivity checks have been conducted on
a monthly basis, it is necessary to establish a log with a record for each of the PAS Vr.
units employed by the Company or Department.
The log also provides a brief description of the action taken to overcome the problem
or to examine the unit for damage as a result of a tester's report. The log will note
instances in which the PAS Vr. has been returned to the manufacturer for service and
when it was received and checked upon its return. The log will also contain a notation
recording each month's sensitivity check and the outcome of that check and also a
calibration adjustment if such an adjustment was necessary.
In addition to monthly sensitivity checks, PAS Vr. units should be checked if they
have received an unusual stress such as being dropped. If a PAS Vr. unit has
been sent to the manufacturer and returned following repair, a check should be
made to ensure that the calibration was not affected by the handling during
shipping. Also, perform periodic functional checks with known sources of alcohol to
be certain all functions (e.g., pump) are performing.
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