Every tool in this fieldbook is introduced once, in the chapter that needs it, and worked there on one of the book’s recurring devices. The full tool appears once, either in the buyer tools or in the builder tools. The chapters use a few devices so the worked examples stay easy to follow, but every tool applies to any institutional device class: a computed tomography (CT) scanner, a chemistry analyzer, an anesthesia workstation, an automated dispensing cabinet, a hemodialysis machine, a smart bed, a washer-disinfector, or a blood bank refrigerator. These pages follow the order a buyer meets the tools, from placing a device in the taxonomy to supporting a fleet until retirement. Copy any of them for your own evaluations and contracts. Fill in one copy per device, fleet, or product. Keep each copy with the decision it informed.
