Utility Management Providence Health System - Oregon Environment 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. 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 building services. They include: Electricity Water Sewer Natural Gas Medical Gases Pneumatic Tube Systems Telephones Computers

Electricity When normal service fails, the generators support: Essential building systems Fire safety systems Red Medical equipment plugged into Red 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 supports food 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 Department manages most utilities. For assistance, call: (PPMC) (PSVMC) (PMH) Information Services manages computers, printers, software applications, telephones, voice mail, and pagers. For assistance, call the IT Help Desk at For the Satellites, the Maintenance Departments are listed in the Emergency Flip Chart.

Utility failures may include: Electricity Water Sewer Natural Gas Medical Gases Pneumatic Tube Systems Telephones Computers The purpose of a Code White is to alert employees to a hospital-wide failure of one or more utility systems. WHITE CODE WHITE Utility 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 becomes part of a short-circuit. This can happen if a person touches: A damaged electric device An electrified object

Prevention of Electrical Shock You can decrease the risk of electrical shock and prevent Injury. Check all medical equipment before use: Inspect the power cord for fraying, splicing, and wear Check the device’s cover for cracks, holes, and other damage Check all connections

For More Information Check the Safety WebPages on the Intranet for: Environment of Care (EOC) Manuals Contact 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.