At SSCOR, we pride ourselves on providing suction that lasts — both in our devices’ consistent performance during each use and the machines’ long lifecycles. 

Each of those characteristics are enhanced with routine maintenance, of course. Emergency medical personnel are well aware their equipment must remain as close to new condition as possible — and, not to mention, sanitized.

Hospital disaster preparedness is so much more than simply writing out a series of steps to be taken in an emergency situation. It’s not something to be done once and then forgotten until needed. Instead, once the plan is created, it should be periodically evaluated, tested, and updated to fill any gaps. We recommend examining your plan at least once every two years.

There are a few different ways that your hospital can audit its plan. These audit methods have varying levels of complexity, but all of them will serve to strengthen your hospital’s current disaster preparedness plan.

Preparing your hospital to handle a disaster is far from a simple process. Not only are there a number of types of disasters that can occur, the coordination of many different departments and disciplines is required.

You’re at home during a thunderstorm, the power cuts out, you search for a flashlight — and the batteries are dead. Plenty of us have been there.

September is National Preparedness Month, and there is no better time to put a disaster preparedness plan in place for your hospital. 

With a well-considered plan, you will be able to tackle problems before they even strike. And although creating a preparedness plan may seem overwhelming, with the right tools and resources, you’ll be able to quickly develop a much clearer understanding of the dangers that can threaten your facility during a crisis.

Disaster preparation is an enormous undertaking for any hospital, but for small or rural hospitals, this challenge is amplified. Geographical separation, budget and staffing shortages, as well as limited bed availability can cause a rural hospital to be quickly overwhelmed when disaster strikes.

Hospitals can generally anticipate an increase in patient volume following a disaster in the community. However, as disasters such as Hurricane Ida have demonstrated, this surge may persist even beyond the immediate influx of patients, especially if there is significant local damage. From dialysis centers to ambulatory care clinics to outpatient chemotherapy–if other health care facilities are inoperable, those patients will rely on the nearest hospital for their medical needs.

The transition to a new year is a fine time to revisit emergency preparedness plans—both for your agency or organization and for the larger community you serve. These six recent emergency preparedness studies should inform your own planning, as well as your educational efforts within your community. These emergency management trends can help you stay ahead of the curve. 

Even in a brand new hospital with all of the latest technology, systems are not completely foolproof. As a medical professional, the more you can anticipate problems, the more prepared you will be to handle them and advanced planning may help avoid a potential crisis.