The Contra Costa County (Calif.) Fire Protection District, an all-risk agency that serves the majority of Contra Costa County in the San Francisco East Bay area, were dispatched to a health healthcare facility during a regional power outage, according to an article on the Fire Engineering website.
The entire facility was without power and the patients in the ventilator wing were dependent on electric ventilator machines. Staff members were using bag valve masks to manually replace the failed ventilators.
Once it was determined that the facility had enough oxygen to last until morning and the ventilator-dependent patients were being manually bagged, the next task was to offer a better, more dependable option for ventilating the 20 patients for the next several hours, the article said.
While the ventilator issues were being addressed, the rescue team and the facility's maintenance supervisor dealt with the facility's backup generator, which was not working.
The Growing Crisis in Rural Healthcare Facilities
A Cleaning Alternative: The Benefits of Steam Technology
Novant Health Gets Approval for New Hospital and Freestanding Emergency Department
Preparing Healthcare Facilities for Severe Thunderstorms
University of South Carolina Opens New Brain Health Center