Are you concerned about fire safety at your healthcare facility? Read on to know how you can secure it from fire hazards.
Healthcare settings such as hospitals, medical centers, and outpatient facilities have all become largely complicated places that now require sophisticated equipment, extensive wiring systems, chemicals, cooking and food preparation, and so on. These complexities make them susceptible to potential fire hazards. Even though the risk of fires is low at healthcare facilities, thousands of fire-related incidents in hospitals are reported each year.
Let’s find out what triggers fire in healthcare facilities:
Sources of Fires in Healthcare Facilities
Specialized Medical Equipment
Electrosurgical and laser tools are an ignition hazard. They can flare up the area when exposed to flammable liquids, oxygen tanks, and surgical clothing.
Kitchen Facilities
Like in other offices, the kitchen remains a common source of fire in medical facilities. Open flames, toasters, electrical ovens, and cooking fats are some common fire hazards.
Electrical Equipment
There is a lot of electrical equipment in a hospital. Hence, the chances of a fire breaking out because of overworked cables or sockets are manifold.
Cigarette Smoke
While smoking is usually banned in healthcare settings, chain smokers just can’t resist the urge and will smoke at areas where the cameras can’t watch them. Others, who only smoke at areas designated for smoking, fail to dispose of the cigarettes properly. In either case, fire accidents can result.
Common Fire Safety Violations in Healthcare Settings
Non-Compliant Fire Doors
Without inspection, the fire doors at hospitals will not latch or close properly or even have holes which kills the purpose of being fire proof.
Hand Sanitizers
Hand sanitizers are a common need and are installed all over hospitals. While they shouldn’t be removed, any sanitization station should be installed at a 6-feet distance from ignition sources. This is because hand sanitizers are highly flammable and will immediately burn up the area when exposed to fire sources. Hospitals don’t seem to care about this.
Obstructed Fire Exits
Another common fire safety violation in hospitals is fire exit doors blocked by medical equipment, wheel chairs, carts, etc.
Mismanagement of Fire Extinguishers
While most healthcare facilities have portable fire extinguishers, they are often obstructed, improperly mounted, or quite old. Some facilities don’t have portable fire extinguishers in the first place.
Issues with Medical Oxygen and Gas Cylinders
Finally, many hospitals don’t pay attention to properly storing and securing medical oxygen and gas cylinders, putting the entire healthcare facility under threat.
Now that you know about the common causes of hospital fires and fire safety violations, assess the risk of fire at your healthcare facility in light of these insights. The best approach is to hire a professional risk assessor so that you can save time and have peace of mind.
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