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Electrical faults in hospitals: causes, problems and solutions

Today we want to address the real problem of electrical faults in hospitals, understanding what they really are, how they occur, what problems they cause, their consequences and how to avoid them.

When we talk about power failures in hospitals, we are referring to any unexpected interruption of the power supply or malfunction of electrical equipment.

In a hospital environment, power failures can have serious consequences, as they can directly affect the lives of patients and the work of healthcare professionals. For this reason, it is essential to understand the causes, the problems caused by electrical faults, to see practical cases in order to become aware of them and to establish measures to prevent them.

Cyber-attacks on healthcare: a growing problem

Are we prepared for an e-pandemic? That is what much of the healthcare sector has been asking itself in recent times due to the increase in cyber-attacks on the healthcare sector.

The digitisation of healthcare systems and the reliance on technology to run hospitals and healthcare facilities have made the healthcare sector an attractive target for cyber criminals.

In recent years, cyber-attacks on Spanish healthcare have increased, affecting hospitals and healthcare centres across the country.

In 2022 more than 500 institutions reported incidents, which, according to data from INCIBE, the National Institute of Cybersecurity, was an increase of 48% compared to 2021.

Five electrical hazards in a hospital: definition and protocol

In this article, we will detail the five main electrical hazards that can occur in a hospital and the protocol for action before, during and after an electrical incident.

The electrical safety of patients, healthcare staff and medical equipment and systems is a crucial issue in healthcare facilities. As we explain in this basic guide, the aim is to avoid problems that could harm the health of patients and the operation of the healthcare centre and medical staff. In other words: to prevent and know how to act in the face of the main electrical risks in a hospital.

Electricity is an integral part of most modern hospitals.

Patient electrical safety: a basic guide

The electrical safety of patients in healthcare centres is a matter of absolute priority, both to avoid problems with electrical current that could harm the health of patients and the operation of the healthcare centre and medical staff.

In this article we will look at some of the crucial elements in ensuring the electrical safety of the patient, such as the standards, the type of electrical system and its elements, and what to do to eliminate and deal with the dangers and risks that exist.

Hospital electrical safety can be defined as the group of preventive actions we take to minimise or eliminate the risk of accidents to patients, medical equipment and infrastructure, and healthcare personnel.

The development and challenges in hospital engineering

In this article, we will learn about the latest and most important developments in hospital engineering, how they are changing the healthcare landscape and what challenges and challenges lie ahead for the industry.

Hospital engineering is a discipline that combines engineering, architecture and medicine. It is a constantly evolving field whose main objective is to improve efficiency and safety, as well as the comfort of patients and medical staff in hospitals. Globally, great advances have been made in this area in recent decades. Let us look at some of them in detail.

TN electrical systems: features, types and TN-S networks in hospital electrical installations

In this article, we would like to address the more technical side of some of the best electrical safety solutions for hospitals and their critical areas. This is the case of TN electrical systems. We will discover what they consist of, what differentiates them from other TT systems and we will delve into the virtues of TN-S networks for electrical installations in hospitals.

Connectors and sockets are key to creating an equipotential bonding to the ground, which helps to avoid touch voltages in critical medical areas.

Therefore, equipotential grounding is an elementary part of safe electrical installation for critical medical environments. These ground connections systems are suitable for surgical units, ICU and in general for critical medical areas.

Switch boxes and medical gas intakes

Within the hospital safety systems and the proper functioning of each health centre, switch boxes and medical gas inlets are two of the fundamental elements for the correct and gradual administration of medical gases.

The reason is twofold: first, to guarantee and ensure the correct supply in the event of a breakdown of one of the lines and for maintenance reasons. And then, so that there is always a line in operation when a part of the lines needs to be repaired or gas cylinders need to be replaced.

In this post, we are going to find out what they are and what their characteristics are.

Industry 4.0 in the hospital sector

Industry 4.0 represents a before and after in the way of working, in the use of resources and in the optimisation of time. That is why it offers a whole series of benefits to any sector, and especially to the one that concerns us, the healthcare sector, and its relationship with the energy sector.

Why? Because it is a key element in adapting to market trends, boosting competitiveness and addressing the energy transition towards cleaner and more sustainable energy. It is also for the management of the electricity system in each hospital.

To find out more about this new Industry 4.0 and its role in healthcare, in this post we look at its current and future role, its characteristics and what it can bring to hospitals.

Batteries and emergency power supply units in hospitals: what you need to know

For decades, the implementation of technology in the different spheres of human life has transformed the way we consume, relate to each other and live. It has certainly transformed it for the better. After all, a priori, technology makes our lives easier. However, as we use more and more electronic systems in our daily lives, we also become more energy dependent.

That is why, in a field such as healthcare, the use of batteries for emergency supply units in hospitals is essential to guarantee permanent access to the power supply, even in the most complicated situations or in exceptional events that may cause, for example, power cuts.

Today we want to address the importance of batteries and uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) for the proper functioning of the healthcare system.

Data networks in hospitals

The daily life of hospitals and any type of health centre is mainly focused on patient medical care. However, beyond people, there are also a series of factors that are part of hospital management and that we cannot ignore.

One of the elements that has gained the most weight recently has been that related to sensitive data that is collected in hospitals and health centres and that, although indirectly, also contributes to good patient care and proper functioning both from a medical and organizational point of view. For example: hospital data networks. Let’s talk about all of this in this article.