Why is the Hospital Electrical Safety Audit Critical
Healthcare facilities in India are expanding rapidly, with larger healthcare groups adding more hospitals to increase their customer base. Older hospitals are upgrading their medical equipment and systems to enhance their competencies and offer more value-added services.
Over the past couple of years, we have experienced electrical hazards in many hospitals across the country. Government authorities and various agencies have started enforcing strict safety standards to improve the safety ecosystem of healthcare facilities.
Electrical Safety Audits in Hospitals
The major objective of electrical safety audits in hospitals is to ensure compliance with all local and national safety standards, guaranteeing safety and reliability. Electrical safety audits help identify anomalies in electrical installations that could lead to electrical shock hazards, unexpected breakdowns, earth leakages, and hidden risks of fire from electrical hazards. These audits ensure complete protection for all stakeholders from possible electricity-related issues.
How to Make Hospital Electrical Safety Audits More Effective?
Hospital Electrical Safety Audits must be conducted by competent agencies with expertise in similar audits. Unlike conventional facilities, hospitals cannot afford stoppages for inspections, so the entire audit must be conducted while the hospital is operational without affecting the critical functioning of any departments. Some departments may have specific times of the day when they are free; however, some departments operate 24/7, making direct inspections challenging. Our expertise in Infrared Thermal Imaging based on Japanese maintenance management techniques helps our team to identify anomalies well in advance without affecting hospital operations.
Common Challenges in Indian Hospitals
Ad hoc additions without proper design or approvals: Often, hospital authorities may lack clarity on electrical system limitations but request new equipment and systems to be added. When the electrical team lacks the capacity or knowledge to resist, they are often forced to add new equipment to the existing network, compromising safety and reliability.
Overloading with existing installation: When additional feeders are not available, the electrical team connects new loads to existing ones, leading to system overloading.
Over-control of OEMs on electrical conditions: Medical equipment manufacturers often enforce conditions such as dedicated earthing, clean earth, and stable neutral-to-earth values. The electrical department is often forced to accept these conditions, even if they are not standard or prevailing practices.
Insufficient protection against earth leakages: Residual Current Circuit Breakers (RCCBs) must be installed in all field panels to protect human beings and critical equipment from earth leakages or electrocution.
Bypassing safety measures: When there is a minor leakage, it may affect the RCCB's operation, leading to false tripping. Instead of identifying and correcting the root cause, some hospitals bypass the RCCB, significantly compromising safety. Such practices are often unknown to management.
Lack of knowledge about the latest systems and standards: Electrical standards and regulations are continually upgraded by the Central Electricity Authority, and hospitals must comply with these standards. The electrical team must be aware of such standards or employ contractors or consultants with sufficient knowledge and expertise.
Insufficient training for team members: Training and development are essential for every engineering team. Hospital team members need periodic training on various topics related to safety, reliability, and efficiency. Their performance should also be monitored.
Every hospital needs a robust and safe electrical infrastructure, and the team should use the available energy safely and reliably. An effective electrical safety audit will help the hospital engineering team identify areas for improvement and take initiatives to enhance safety, reliability, and efficiency.
