Back to the generator. Do you have a program of routine testing and maintenance. It should probably be run for about an hour at least once a month. Once a year it should be connected to the emergency loads and operation verified. Look at the manufactuere's recommendations. Just getting it running once is a waste of time. Run it often.
I need emergency backup lights for my hospital... suggestions?
- Thread starter djans1397
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Sgt. LED
Flashaholic
My hospital is 500 beds + the ER and I can tell you whatever you get expect for at least 30% of them to walk away.
Stick with LED's because you never know how long the lights may be out.
Cr123 lights are great to put away till you need them.
AA lights are fine as long as you only pair them with lithiums.
You wouldn't need more than 100 lumen really. Even 50 would be fine.
Headlamps would be really nice to work with.
Good luck picking something tough enough to last while being cheap enough to replace often due to theft. I reccomend issuing them to each of the staff. If someone signs for it that makes it easy to figure out who to charge for the replacement unit.
Stick with LED's because you never know how long the lights may be out.
Cr123 lights are great to put away till you need them.
AA lights are fine as long as you only pair them with lithiums.
You wouldn't need more than 100 lumen really. Even 50 would be fine.
Headlamps would be really nice to work with.
Good luck picking something tough enough to last while being cheap enough to replace often due to theft. I reccomend issuing them to each of the staff. If someone signs for it that makes it easy to figure out who to charge for the replacement unit.
abvidledUK
Flashlight Enthusiast
I'd write "doesn't work, knackered, u/s" on my torch, which may prevent it being half-inched.
PhotonWrangler
Flashaholic
I had to look up knackered. Apparently it means "tired, worn out, exhausted." What does "half-inched" mean?
abvidledUK
Flashlight Enthusiast
Pinched !
Cross-contamination and hands
An appropriate headlamp with a diffuser should not have to be positioned or aimed many times by a caregiver whose work involves changing locations, such as going from room to room.
By contrast, a tail-standing flashlight would have to be moved by hand repeatedly, and therefore the flashlight could be a source of cross-contamination unless it were sanitized or washed repeatedly. I am having difficulty visualizing a caregiver with time to sanitize or wash and dry a flashlight over and over again. Would a flashlight with multiple D cells even fit into each sink? If the sanitizer or sink is not next to the patient, then the flashlight might have to be positioned and made to tail-stand (without blinding the caregiver), twice per patient.
If a caregiver works in one location, then I could visualize the use of powerful tail-standing flashlights. If a caregiver has an ever-present assistant, then there are more options.
These comments may reveal my ignorance about medical institutions; but from what I have read, hand-cleaning methods and compliance are important.
An appropriate headlamp with a diffuser should not have to be positioned or aimed many times by a caregiver whose work involves changing locations, such as going from room to room.
By contrast, a tail-standing flashlight would have to be moved by hand repeatedly, and therefore the flashlight could be a source of cross-contamination unless it were sanitized or washed repeatedly. I am having difficulty visualizing a caregiver with time to sanitize or wash and dry a flashlight over and over again. Would a flashlight with multiple D cells even fit into each sink? If the sanitizer or sink is not next to the patient, then the flashlight might have to be positioned and made to tail-stand (without blinding the caregiver), twice per patient.
If a caregiver works in one location, then I could visualize the use of powerful tail-standing flashlights. If a caregiver has an ever-present assistant, then there are more options.
These comments may reveal my ignorance about medical institutions; but from what I have read, hand-cleaning methods and compliance are important.
Armed_Forces
Enlightened
- Joined
- Oct 19, 2008
- Messages
- 488
..he's trying to say nicked ! y' know, fell off the back of a lorry /wink.
(and look up plonker while you're at it
)fieldops
Flashlight Enthusiast
I agree with the others who stressed the use of headlamps. I would want as many of my personnel to have both hands free as possible.
Dr Jekell
Enlightened
+1 This I believe that this would be the best solution for your needs.
mrmike
Newly Enlightened
I understand the situation well.
I work in a hospital that recently built a huge addition that more than doubled the size of the hospital.
I take a lot of jabs about my weird flashlight hobby... except whenever there were problems with the power (like when the workmen cut the main power line with a saw). All of a sudden I'm the only person in radiology who is actually "mobile" because I can see (there's no windows in radiation areas, hence there's -no- light).
I also suggest the Streamlight ProPolys. To those who don't know any better, they look like cheap plastic Walmart lights; and that means they're more likely to stay in the building. Nice, shiny aluminum lights are more likely to find themselves in someone's home.
I work in a hospital that recently built a huge addition that more than doubled the size of the hospital.
I take a lot of jabs about my weird flashlight hobby... except whenever there were problems with the power (like when the workmen cut the main power line with a saw). All of a sudden I'm the only person in radiology who is actually "mobile" because I can see (there's no windows in radiation areas, hence there's -no- light).
I also suggest the Streamlight ProPolys. To those who don't know any better, they look like cheap plastic Walmart lights; and that means they're more likely to stay in the building. Nice, shiny aluminum lights are more likely to find themselves in someone's home.
hank
Flashlight Enthusiast
http://www.dorcy.com/products.aspx?p=411642
On sale through end of year (2 days to go), code "holiday20" for 20 percent off so $8 each, and right now, free shipping
Drop into any ordinary flashlight that uses 2 to 6 cells.
Do fine in the cheapest 99-cent flashlights so they don't look attractive to steal.
I buy half a dozen at a time when they come on sale, they've been cheaper once but this isn't bad.
Heck, call Dorcy's office and tell them what you need, you can probably get a better deal.
This isn't instead of any of the other good ideas. This is the "and also" option that lets you make any old standard flashlight into a good long lasting LED light.
On sale through end of year (2 days to go), code "holiday20" for 20 percent off so $8 each, and right now, free shipping
Drop into any ordinary flashlight that uses 2 to 6 cells.
Do fine in the cheapest 99-cent flashlights so they don't look attractive to steal.
I buy half a dozen at a time when they come on sale, they've been cheaper once but this isn't bad.
Heck, call Dorcy's office and tell them what you need, you can probably get a better deal.
This isn't instead of any of the other good ideas. This is the "and also" option that lets you make any old standard flashlight into a good long lasting LED light.
Hooked on Fenix
Flashlight Enthusiast
- Joined
- Dec 13, 2007
- Messages
- 3,133
I agree with a lot of the good suggestions so far. Headlights are good for the doctors/surgeons. Princeton Tec EOS and Quad headlights are good. Fauxtons for everyone. Maybe a few l.e.d. Maglites in the area for when brighter light is needed. I'd like to add that a good l.e.d. lantern is useful. I like Coleman's $25 145 lumen 4D Cree XR-E packaway lantern. It's available at Walmart, is very bright, lasts a long time (18 hours on high, 40 on low which is 50% brightness of high), is big enough to not walk off, and is cheap, all things considered. It has a 10 lumen nightlight setting for really long runtimes. If you're going to ceiling bounce a light in a large hospital room, try the 530 lumen rechargeable Coleman Cree spotlight. 530 lumens for 2.5 hours could be very useful in a hospital. It's $40 at Walmart's online site. I've never seen it in a Walmart, but I have seen it at Sports Authority for $60. Also, don't rule out florescent lanterns. There are ones that are near 400 lumens available for around $30 at Walmart.
hank
Flashlight Enthusiast
And don't forget _something_ that runs off 12 volts.
Someone will be willing to lose the setting on their clock and radio and drag a car battery in, if the power's really off a long while.
An RV store will have 12-volt fluorescent strip lighting ideal for that purpose, or you can find 12v LEDs nowadays.
Fluorescent may yet be more efficient for area lighting in particular.
Someone will be willing to lose the setting on their clock and radio and drag a car battery in, if the power's really off a long while.
An RV store will have 12-volt fluorescent strip lighting ideal for that purpose, or you can find 12v LEDs nowadays.
Fluorescent may yet be more efficient for area lighting in particular.
Not flashlights, but Cyalume light sticks might be useful.
I wrote a long-term blackout plan that called for taping light sticks to the emergency exit door push bars. etc. etc.
I was standing in a hospital emergency room when the power failed. The generator failed. The battery backup lights failed. The only light that came on was my Mag-Charger. The moment of validation we live for!
I wrote a long-term blackout plan that called for taping light sticks to the emergency exit door push bars. etc. etc.
I was standing in a hospital emergency room when the power failed. The generator failed. The battery backup lights failed. The only light that came on was my Mag-Charger. The moment of validation we live for!
Lightingguy321
Enlightened
- Joined
- Oct 5, 2006
- Messages
- 654
Boat load of Streamlight Stylus Pros or Microstreams with Lithium AAA batteries? Small, bright enough for what is needed.
notrefined
Enlightened
hank,
do you happen to know if those dorcy bulbs will take reverse polarity?
do you happen to know if those dorcy bulbs will take reverse polarity?
Timothybil
Flashlight Enthusiast
And lock them in the narcotics cabinets and make them part of the turnover process. That way there is always some one signing for them and being responsible. [That would be for the miniMags or whatever of that size]
I would put a reasonable amount of 'waterproof' headlights in the ED and Operating Theaters for use by personnel there. I say waterproof because they would be easier to chemically sterilize that way. If they were put in sterile packs in a GITD case on the wall or somewhere I doubt you would have much of a problem with them disappearing. If it was my space, I would also install a Streamlight LiteBox power failure lantern on the wall. Since there should already be the regular power failure exit-style lamps installed, the LiteBox would make a good backup, and be great for using ceiling bounce to provide some general illumination.
An alternative for nursing staff could be quiqlites or Pelican VersaBrite. Either one is handsfree. They could be locked up in the narcotics cabinet or issued just like the name tag/badge, with each person being responsible for their own.
Sgt. LED
Flashaholic
The narc cabinet is a good idea. Stick them beside the extra OT strips!
Timothybil
Flashlight Enthusiast
I made this a separate response to keep the length down on the last one. One thing no one has touched on is battery management. If you are going to issue or stockpile lights, you will have to have a battery management program of some sort. For issued lights you will have to have replacements available upon request. For stockpiled lights, not only will you need replacements, you will have to have some periodic testing and battery replacement program in place. Stockpiled lights don't do very much good if during the first crucial minutes of power failure everyone is standing around the nurses' station replacing stale [dead or almost dead] batteries! This should be included as part of your scheduled activities in your Contingency Management Plan - you do have a CMP, don't you?
It also wouldn't hurt to have a case or so of those little mini chem lights around. When power goes off and the generator backup fails, just grab a couple of orderlies, give them each a bunch of the minichems and a roll of scotch tape, and tell them to activate one for every room and tape it to the door frame about head height. That way there would be a sort of night light for the patients so they could orient themselves in their rooms, and not have a bunch of patients freaking out because their rooms are pitch black. :candle: They could also fasten one every so many rooms in the hallway for the same purpose. This is where those pre-cut packaging Scotch tapes and a small carpenter apron would be nice - reach in to the apron and grab a chemlight, snap and shake with one hand, grab a piece of tape from your wrist with the other and tape it up. Then grap, snap, and shake while on your way to the next room.
And to think - they used to pay me to sit around and think of stuff like this! (Of course, I also had to implement it then - the hard part of the job)
It also wouldn't hurt to have a case or so of those little mini chem lights around. When power goes off and the generator backup fails, just grab a couple of orderlies, give them each a bunch of the minichems and a roll of scotch tape, and tell them to activate one for every room and tape it to the door frame about head height. That way there would be a sort of night light for the patients so they could orient themselves in their rooms, and not have a bunch of patients freaking out because their rooms are pitch black. :candle: They could also fasten one every so many rooms in the hallway for the same purpose. This is where those pre-cut packaging Scotch tapes and a small carpenter apron would be nice - reach in to the apron and grab a chemlight, snap and shake with one hand, grab a piece of tape from your wrist with the other and tape it up. Then grap, snap, and shake while on your way to the next room.
And to think - they used to pay me to sit around and think of stuff like this! (Of course, I also had to implement it then - the hard part of the job)
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