Utility Management
Providence Health System - OregonEnvironment of Care
Purpose
You need to:Have a basic understanding
of what utilities do and how
they support patient care.
Effectively respond / support
patient care if one of these
systems fail.
EOC Manual
EOC Manual
The hospital utilities support all the essential building
systems and medical equipment used to care for patients.
Control Panel for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Systems (HVAC)
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:Identify each utility and state it’s function.
Know how to report a utility failure and obtain repair services.
Identify Code White as the utility failure code for the hospital.
Know how to access your department’s Utility Contingency Plan.
Know how to prevent electrical shock.
What Are Utilities?
Utilities are basic buildingservices. They include:
ElectricityWaterSewerNatural GasMedical GasesPneumatic Tube SystemsTelephonesComputers
Electricity
When normal service fails, the generators support:
Essential building systemsFire safety systemsMedical equipment plugged into RedRed outlets
Emergency Electrical Service is supplied from the hospital’s emergency power generators.
The hospital also has a Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)
system. It permits power sensitive equipment to function normally
during transitions in power supply. UPS outlets are orange.
Few Satellite buildings have emergency powered generators.
Natural Gas Service
The hospital uses natural gas as the primary fuel for the boilers to make steam and hot water. Natural gas also supportsfood service and lab processes.
The hospital has backup diesel fuel supplies to fire the boilers if the natural gas supply fails.
Water and Sewer
Water is needed for:
Drinking and cooking
Bathing and cleaning
Flushing the toilet
Steam production
Heating and cooling systems
Cooling some clinical equipment
The Sewer Service allows for
waste disposal from the facility.
Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Systems (HVAC)
The functions of HVAC include:Heating to support room comfort
Ventilation to support air quality
and infection control
Cooling to support human comfort
and in some locations equipment function
Piped Medical Gases
Medical gases include oxygen, nitrogen, nitrous oxide, and carbon dioxide.
They are supplied from the hospital medical gas storage systems.
Medical gases are distributed to specific outlets throughout the hospital.
Medical Air is also distributed via special outlets throughout the hospital.
Fire Protection System
The fire protection systems are operated and maintained by the Hospital’s Physical Plant and the Satellite’s Maintenance Departments.
Smoke detection systems are designed to operate at all times.
Fire sprinklers turn on when a defined temperature is reached.
Fire alarms are triggered by either the smoke detection or fire sprinkler systems. They produce audible alarms and visual strobe signals.
Additional Systems
Additional systems include:Medical Vacuum System
Pneumatic Tube System
Computers
Telephone Service
Utility Management
The Physical Plant Departmentmanages most utilities.For assistance, call:
(PPMC) 503-215-6105.(PSVMC) 503-216-5000.(PMH) 503-513-8877.
Information Services manages computers, printers, software applications, telephones, voice mail, and pagers. For assistance, call the IT Help Desk at 503-216-2800.
For the Satellites, the Maintenance Departments are listed in the Emergency Flip Chart.
Utility failures may include:ElectricityWaterSewerNatural GasMedical GasesPneumatic Tube SystemsTelephonesComputers
The purpose of a Code White is to alert employees to a hospital-wide failure of one or more utility systems.
CODE WHITEWHITEUtility Failure
All departments throughout the Portland Service Area have Utility Failure Plans that identify what action you need to take in the event of one or more utility failures.
You need to know the location of your Utility Failure Plan.
Contact your Safety Manager, Department Manager, or Safety Coordinator if you have any questions.
Utility Failure
Emergency Shut Off
Only the Nurse Manager or their designee can shut off medical gases in response to a request from emergency responder/s (i.e. Fire Department).
Electrical Shock
Electrical shock happens when a person becomespart of a short-circuit.
This can happen if a person touches:
A damaged electric deviceAn electrified object
Prevention of Electrical Shock
You can decrease the risk of electrical shock and preventInjury. Check all medical equipment before use:
Inspect the power cord for fraying, splicing, and wearCheck the device’s cover for cracks, holes, and other damageCheck all connections
For More Information
Check the Safety WebPageson the Intranet for:
Environment of Care (EOC) ManualsContact information for
your Safety Managers
Use this Intranet link:
For more information, refer to your Department Emergency Manual (Flip Chart) or talk with your Department Safety Coordinator or Manager.
http://phsnet.phsor.org/safety/