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What This Guide Helps With
Addresses feeding interruptions associated with the external pumping mechanism, cassette seating, tubing position, door closure, contamination, or mechanical obstruction.
Step-by-Step Troubleshooting
1. Protect the Patient
Stop using the affected pump if feeding has become unreliable. Move the patient to another verified feeding pump or approved alternate method before troubleshooting.
Expected outcome: Patient feeding is maintained independently of the affected device.
2. Confirm the Exact Error Condition
Record the displayed message and determine whether the error appears during loading, priming, startup, or active feeding.
Restart the pump with the same setup only if safe to reproduce the condition on the bench.
Expected outcome: The point at which the mechanical or door-related error occurs is established.
3. Inspect the Pump Externally
Turn the pump off and inspect the cassette-loading area, visible rotor surfaces, tubing guides, valve-contact areas, and door for dried formula, debris, cracking, deformation, or obvious mechanical obstruction.
Do not force the rotor, door, or other moving components.
Expected outcome: No external obstruction or physical damage interferes with normal movement.
4. Inspect the Disposable Set
Remove the set and check for twisted tubing, distorted cassette components, stretched tubing, improper routing, or contamination.
Verify the set is appropriate for the Kangaroo Joey.
Expected outcome: The disposable is intact and capable of seating normally.
5. Reload the Set and Verify Door Closure
Seat the cassette and tubing fully in the intended path. Close the door smoothly and verify it latches without unusual resistance.
Do not force a door that will not close.
Expected outcome: The door closes normally and the pump accepts the set without a door or loading error.
If the error clears and remains absent during functional testing, troubleshooting can stop.
6. Clean Accessible Contamination
If dried feeding solution or residue is present on accessible external surfaces, clean it using facility-approved methods consistent with manufacturer guidance.
Do not allow liquid to enter the pump housing.
Expected outcome: Accessible moving and sensing areas are clean and unobstructed.
7. Test With a Known-Good Set
Install a new or known-good compatible disposable and repeat loading and priming.
Expected outcome: A known-good set operates without triggering the mechanical or door error.
If the known-good set resolves the problem, remove the original disposable from use and proceed to final verification.
8. Check for Repeatable Pump-Specific Behavior
If the error occurs with multiple known-good sets, observe whether the door feels loose, fails to latch consistently, or whether visible mechanical movement appears abnormal during a nonpatient test.
Do not disassemble the pumping mechanism.
Expected outcome: The failure is confirmed as pump-specific rather than disposable-specific.
9. Complete Functional Verification
Confirm normal loading, priming, feeding, stopping, restarting, and applicable alarm functions using a controlled test setup.
Expected outcome: The pump functions normally without recurring rotor, valve, or door errors.
10. Escalate Persistent Mechanical Errors
Remove the pump from service if the error returns with known-good disposables or the door, rotor, or valve mechanism appears physically abnormal.
Expected outcome: The unreliable pump is prevented from returning to patient care.
If the Problem Persists
External loading, disposable, tubing, contamination, and door-position causes have been ruled out. The remaining issue may involve a mechanical drive assembly, door-detection mechanism, valve actuation, sensor, or other service-level component.
The device should be removed from service, labeled Out of Service, and sent for qualified bench evaluation using appropriate Cardinal Health documentation and approved test equipment. Repairs should be performed only by qualified personnel, followed by required functional, delivery, alarm, and safety checks before return to service.
Stopping before unnecessary disassembly is proper troubleshooting.
Clinical Use Tip
Do not force a cassette door closed; abnormal resistance can indicate incorrect loading, a damaged disposable, contamination, or a pump mechanism problem.
Work Order Documentation (CCR Method)
CCR = Complaint, Cause, Resolution
Complaint
What was reported by the clinical staff.
Example:
"Nursing reported that the Kangaroo Joey stopped feeding and displayed a cassette-door-related error."
Cause
What was observed during troubleshooting.
Example:
"Clinical Engineering found the feeding set tubing was misrouted and prevented the cassette door from closing completely."
Resolution
What action was taken.
Example:
"Correctly reloaded the tubing, verified normal door closure, completed priming and feeding checks, and returned the pump to service."
Helpful Details to Include (If Known)
- Exact error message
- Whether failure occurred during loading, priming, or feeding
- Cassette and tubing condition
- Door latch condition
- Presence of dried formula or debris
- Known-good set result
- Whether the fault repeated
- Functional test result
- Final device status
Final Thought
Begin with patient safety, inspect loading and external mechanical conditions before suspecting an internal failure, verify correction under controlled conditions, and remove repeatably unreliable pumps from service.
That is successful troubleshooting.