MISHE NEWS
Winter/Spring 2008 Pier-George
Zanoni, PE
Volume 154 MISHE
Newsletter editor
IN THIS ISSUE:
South
Eastern Michigan Society for Healthcare Engineering (SMSHE)
West
Michigan Society for Healthcare Engineering (WMSHE)
North
Central Michigan Society for Healthcare Engineering (NCMSHE)
Upper
Peninsula Society for Healthcare Engineering (UPSHE)
East
Central Michigan Society for Healthcare Engineering (ECMSHE)
The
Joint Commission Issues Sentinel Alert on Increase in MRI Accidents
Hallway
Obstructions – Corridor Clutter
Proposed
Bariatric Design Standards
EPA
Issues Emission Standards for Hospital Sterilizers
Download and read the
entire issue in Acrobat Reader – MiSHE News
President’s
Letter
Dear MiSHE Member's,
The
planning committee has been working very hard to ensure this year’s annual
MiSHE conference is one for the record books. As many of you already know, the
conference will be held in Sault Ste. Marie on the
I’d to extend a special thank you to our planning committee members for this years conference; Mitch Saxton, Steve McNabb, Sandra Hohman and Glenn Patrick. The MiSHE Board takes great pride in the annual conference and attempts to improve the event each and every year through our volunteers. We begin planning for the annual conference more than a year in advance, so the volunteers spend a fair amount of their personal time working the event. I hope to see all of you in Sault Ste. Marie this coming September. For more information about the conference see the link for annual conference on our Web Site.
Updates on our three objectives for the year;
To strengthen our organization MiSHE’s updated
mission statement will be posted on the Web site in the coming months. I
believe this will help healthcare organizations in
The importance of our members; without all of you we simply don’t exist so membership is the single most important asset we have. Our membership committee has been working side by side with the education committee to update and better define who our member’s are in the organization. We are also adding a student category for the first time to allow new member’s to join with a student status. These new members may be in college or other program and have an interest in the Facilities Healthcare field. The MiSHE bylaws will be updated to reflect these updates and sent out to current membership for review and approval later this year.
All our local chapters have been planning educational activities for their members as well. I would encourage everyone to visit the MiSHE Web site and click on the different links that take you to the other chapters information to see what is occurring throughout the state.
ASHE’s annual conference which travels
around the country from year to year will be in
Your 2008 MiSHE President
Don Paul
MiSHE Annual
Conference
Mark your
calendar for next MiSHE conference September 24, 25, & 26! The conference
will be held at the Kewadin Casino and
South Eastern
Michigan Society for Healthcare Engineering (SMSHE)
The SE
Chapter has been very active again this year. The new president Tom Hale has
reinvigorated the chapter and has encouraged participation on several
initiatives. One of these is membership. SMSHE is planning on conducting a membership
drive sometime this spring to recruit new members from institutions that are
not currently represented. There is a potential of 228 members and as dues are
paid, current numbers are climbing. Members are reminded that the deadline for
2008 dues is coming soon – all members who have not renewed their membership
are encouraged to use the online membership renewal process.
In the planning stages again this year is a golf event. Each year this
event gets larger and more fun. The golf event is annually held at the
Woodlands of Van Buren Golf Course each year. This year there may be a putting
contest and 4 additional hole-in-one contests – plans are still in the works.
Chapter meetings are continually being planned. Notice of those meetings is
sent to members by email. Members are asked to put in their request for topics
and presentations at chapter meetings.
The SMSHE Board met in February. Some of the issues were financial, web
page, golf event, membership, and education. The next meeting will be sometime
in April.
West Michigan Society
for Healthcare Engineering (WMSHE)
The WM Chapter met in January and
was hosted by GMB Architects-Engineers. The educational program was on LEED for
Healthcare Rating System. 68 members have currently renewed their membership
with a potential of a possible 158 in this region. Membership is one of
WMSHE’s initiatives for this year. The next chapter meeting will be on March 19th
at Eckert Wordell Architects in
The WM chapter serves the needs of facilities managers from hospitals
located as far north as Manistee and as far east to
The new president, Bob Grutter, is focusing on how WMSHE, as a regional
chapter, provides value to its membership. A member will feel the need to
attend meetings, participate in events, and renew membership only if they
perceive that we offer something that can be worthwhile for him. We hope
to do so by providing pertinent, knowledgeable speakers and topics at our chapter
meetings.
Members are reminded that there are opportunities to attend several
events each year at reduced or no cost if membership dues are paid. Membership
renewal is easier than ever and can be done electronically. Go to the WMSHE web
page or the MiSHE web page to find a link to Membership Renewal. Additionally,
only members can login to certain parts of the web. It is very important to
renew to be able to receive the benefits of membership!
North Central
Michigan Society for Healthcare Engineering (NCMSHE)
The NC Chapter is seeing some new activity under the leadership of the
new president,
The Chapter web page has been updated. Members are encouraged to go to
the NC Chapter web page. A link to the page can be found on the MiSHE main
page: www.mishe.org On the NCMSHE homepage are
links to the Presidents Note, NCMSHE Activities, Minutes, and Member
Information.
Membership in NCMSHE stands at 40. Three are associate members, two are
Life Member and the balance Professional members. Chapter meetings are hosted
at member institutions throughout the tip-of-the-mitten. 14 members attended
the last chapter meeting. The presentation was conducted by a representative
from SturctureTech and following the chapter meeting, members were treated to a
tour of the host facility,
The next NC Chapter meeting is tentatively scheduled for April 30th
with the potential topic of “Arch Flash Protection.” Members can expect more
information about this chapter meeting very soon.
Upper Peninsula Society
for Healthcare Engineering (UPSHE)
For the past several years the UP Chapter has been holding informal
meetings for interested healthcare engineering professionals. The UP Chapter
services the entire landmass of the
Glenn Patrick, President, reports the UP Chapter has 38 professional
members who represent all but a couple of the major healthcare institutions in
the
East Central
Michigan Society for Healthcare Engineering (ECMSHE)
The new president for the EC Chapter is busy with many things this year.
Mr. Tim Jaster is not only the president of ECMSHE, he is also the
Secretary for the state chapter MiSHE. Juggling his current job as the
Facilities Manager for
EC activities or emphasis this year will center around two issues: 1)
chapter meetings and 2) networking among members. The EC Chapter is made
up of 108 potential members. Four Life Members have been honored over the past
few years for their contribution to healthcare. Nine are Associate members and
the balance is Professional members.
Professional members represent all but a few of the healthcare institutions in
this region of
The Joint Commission Issues Sentinel Alert on
Increase in MRI Accidents
On February14, 2008 The Joint Commission published Sentinel Event Alert
Issue # 38 entitled “Preventing accidents and injuries in the MRI suite.”
Visit www.simplyphysics.com for more photos.
This alert explains that, while more than 10
million MRI, or MR, scans are done in the
- “Missile
effect” or “projectile” injury in which ferromagnetic objects (those
having magnetic properties) such as ink pens, wheelchairs, and oxygen
canisters are pulled into the MRI scanner at rapid velocity.
- Injury
related to dislodged ferromagnetic implants such as aneurysm clips, pins
in joints, and drug infusion devices.
- Burns from
objects that may heat during the MRI process, such as wires (including
lead wires for both implants and external devices) and surgical staples,
or from the patient’s body touching the inside walls (the bore) of the MRI
scanner during the scan. (2)
- Injury or
complication related to equipment or device malfunction or failure caused
by the magnetic field. For example, battery-powered devices
(laryngoscopes, microinfusion pumps, monitors, etc.) can suddenly fail to
operate; some programmable infusion pumps may perform erratically; (3) and pacemakers and implantable defibrillators may not
behave as programmed.
- Injury or
complication due to failure to attend to patient support systems during
the MRI. This is especially true for patient sedation or anesthesia in MRI
arenas. For example, oxygen canisters or infusion pumps run out and staff
must either leave the MRI area to retrieve a replacement or move the
patient to an area where a replacement can be found.
- Acoustic
injury from the loud knocking noise that the MRI scanner makes.
- Adverse
events related to the administration of MRI contrast agents.
- Adverse events
related to cryogen handling, storage, or inadvertent release in
superconducting MR imaging system sites.
The JC recommends the following to reduce the risk of injury during MRIs:
- Restrict access to all MRI sites by creating safe zones
recommended by the ACR;
- Use trained screeners to perform double checks of
patients for items such as metal objects, implanted or other devices, drug
delivery patches and tattoos;
- Ensure that the MRI technologist has the patient’s
complete and accurate medical history to ensure that the patient can be
safely scanned;
- Have a specially trained staff person accompany any
patients, visitors and staff into the MRI suite at all times;
- Annually educate all medical and ancillary staff who
may accompany patients into the MRI suite about the risk of accidents;
- Take precautions to prevent patient burns during
scanning;
- Only use fire extinguishers, oxygen tanks and other
equipment that have been tested and approved for use during MRI scans
(equipment that will not be attracted to the magnet);
- Manage critically ill patients who require monitoring
and life-sustaining drugs to assure that their care needs are continuously
met while in the MRI suite;
- Provide all MRI patients with ear plugs to diminish the
loud “knocking” noise emanating from the equipment; and
- Never run a cardio-pulmonary arrest code
or resuscitate a patient in the MRI room.
To view/download the entire alert see: http://www.jointcommission.org/SentinelEvents/SentinelEventAlert/sea_38.htm
Hallway Obstructions – Corridor Clutter
The following question was posted on the ASHE ListServ: Can anyone help me with NFPA 101
18/19.2.3.4 with the phrase of "in use" vs. "not in
use" vs. "in storage"?
Answers:
1) Susan McLaughlin
"In use" comes from ASHE
agreements with Joint Commission in the mid-90's. It means that if a cart on
wheels is actively being used, such as a housekeeping or linen cart as the
rooms are being serviced, or a dietary cart as the meals are being served.
Also, a crash cart is considered to
always be in use, as is an isolation cart when there is a person in isolation
in the room.
At other times, these carts should
not be parked in the corridor, and as of late, the Joint Commission surveyors
have adopted a 30 minute parking rule. If they see something apparently parked
in the corridor and it is still there 30 minutes later, that will likely be
cited.
A more complicated issue is the
Computers on Wheels (COWS). If they are actively being used during periods of
charting, they may be in the corridors.
But if they (or other electrical equipment) is plugged in to charge in
the corridor, it is not acceptable because that is viewed as a storage
location.
2) Larry LeForge, CHFM, Dir of Plant
Services & Security
Presuming your enquiry is in
reference to items in the corridor, the term "In-Use" would have the
same meaning as "Attended". In
Similarly housekeeping carts and
food services carts are considered "In-Use" if staff is close by. If
housekeeping or food service staff leave their cart in the corridor while
taking a 1 hour lunch, that would be considered "not-in-use".
3) Chet Howard, Dir of Maint,
Arkansas Children’s Hospital
A JC surveyor once told us that if
it hasn't moved in 30 minutes, or it's plugged into a receptacle, it's stored.
In a recent mock survey, the administrator surveyor said that the item can only
be "in use" if the person attending it is within sight of it, or in
the room next to it. He used a cleaning cart as an example. If the attendant
has gone on break and is not attending the cart, it's stored, but if they're
close by, it's in use. Hope this helps.
4) Ron Thetford
Ron, the "30 minute rule"
is how we address this issue as well. During our recent state survey, the
inspector pointed out the patient lifts being charged (plugged in), and this
has not been an issue before, but he did quote the 30 minute rule as others
have mentioned.
Proposed Bariatric Design Standards
The Facilities Guidelines Institute (FGI) American Institute of
Architects (AIA) Guidelines committee met in
Although the document may change quite a bit before being finalized
- nevertheless, this draft should be a very helpful document for anyone
attempting to accommodate the needs our a bariatric population since it
represents current thinking on the issues of bariatric design. A copy of
the proposed Bariatric Care Design standards has been posted to Yahoo Groups.
Sincerely,
Pier-George Zanoni, PE, CSP, CIH
MISHE Codes & Standards Committee Chair
EPA Issues Emission Standards for Hospital
Sterilizers
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) implemented national emissions standards for ethylene oxide sterilizers, used by some hospitals to sterilize medical devices. Contained in a final rule effective Dec. 28, the standards generally require hospital ethylene oxide sterilization facilities to sterilize full loads of items to reduce hazardous emissions. See Federal Register Dec 28, 2007. Exceptions include when central services staff, a hospital administrator or physician on duty determine that a less than full load is medically necessary, or the sterilizer has an acceptable air pollution control device.
OSHA Regional News Release
U.S Department of Labor
Office of
Public Affairs Region
3
Region 3
News Release: 08-37-PHI (osha 08-003)
Jan. 11, 2008
Contact: Alisha Brown
Phone: 215-861-5101
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