We’re only immortal for a limited time

Just taking a quick cruise the FAQ pages and came across one or two items of interest; commentary as applicable…

Our friends in Chicago have given the thumbs up to using the current pandemic response to meet the emergency management exercise(s) requirements. Make sure you document the evaluation in accordance with the six critical areas of response:

• Communications—what worked well and what did not
• Resources and assets—what resources were abundant, adequate or lacking
• Safety and security—what issues arose and how were they resolved
• Staff responsibilities—what issues arose and how were they resolved
• Utilities—what issues arose and how were they resolved
• Patient clinical and support activities—what was abundant, adequate or lacking.

There is an indication that they may be “leaning” on EM when the survey process returns in earnest (and we all know how important that is…).

Moving on to the world of equipment management, specifically diagnostic imaging equipment, there is some relief relative to the completion of performance evaluations for certain systems (CT, MRI, NM, PET, but not mammography) for the duration of the declared state of emergency. I’d be curious as to how folks have been managing this in general; I suspect that some folks had these on the schedule before things came to a screeching halt, but we’re rounding the corner on a year’s worth of pandemic delight so probably want to keep an eye on where things stand. As with many things, the clock will be ticking once the state of emergency is discontinued, at which point you’ll have 60 days to get things scheduled. I bet there will be a lot of competition for external resources at that point…

We’ll close out this week’s edition with some fodder for the HVAC-heads in the crowd. I have to admit that the question being asked and the response don’t seem to match up particularly well and I do think there probably ought to be some mention of the manufacturers’ instructions for use (nothing like a little IFU to make one’s day). The question seems more along the line of “what should we be doing now,” but the response seems to focus a little more on “here’s what you do when this is all over,” when it comes to maintaining HVAC equipment being used to support COVID units. Again, I suspect the IFUs have a big part of where we should be at the moment. Hopefully, you’ve had enough ebb and flow of patients to be able to attend to something close to a normal preventive maintenance schedule and it probably couldn’t hurt to reach out to equipment manufacturers’ if we have significantly modified the use of existing systems and equipment. That said, I would certainly recommend including the bulleted items noted in the FAQ once we’re in a position to start returning things to “normal.”

Won’t you be glad when normal doesn’t have to be in quotation marks?

Hope you all remain safe and well!

About the Author: Steve MacArthur is a safety consultant with The Greeley Company in Danvers, Mass. He brings more than 30 years of healthcare management and consulting experience to his work with hospitals, physician offices, and ambulatory care facilities across the country. He is the author of HCPro's Hospital Safety Director's Handbook and is contributing editor for Healthcare Safety Leader. Contact Steve at stevemacsafetyspace@gmail.com.