In the hospitals of the OLVG, it is structurally tested whether it is possible to work in the event of a large -scale power outage. With the national power outage in Spain and Portugal, the question arises whether we are prepared for such a crisis situation here in Amsterdam. No worries at the OLVG in any case, because they are well prepared for such a situation.
In the OLVG, Monique Bugel is responsible for crisis situations in the hospital. She therefore knows exactly which protocols come into effect when the current suddenly fails. “In the first instance, the most important thing is: patients are and remain safe,” Bugel assures. “So if you are in the operating room and you are operated on, nothing scary will happen. The surgeon can just operate on you.”
Emergency power supply
Other departments will also not be affected, she says. Because, you are in the hospital in the intensive care at the ventilation, no danger will arise there either. This is mainly due to the emergency power supply, which will work immediately as soon as the power fails.
That also continues to work, as long as diesel is available, because it works on aggregates. Bugel: “If there is power outage in the city and the power is also interrupted for the OLVG, all emergency aggregates automatically start to provide the hospital with electricity.”
It is tested every month whether the emergency facilities work properly. “April 12, so recently, we also had such a situation in which we have tested whether everything works,” explains the calamity coordinator. “Then we worked on emergency power for almost half a day.”
In Amsterdam it has been a while since the city was flat. In 2017 there was a large -scale power outage where no fewer than 360,000 people were without electricity for a while. Amsterdammers were stuck in lifts, trams and subways.
Close contact
Now the tensions in the world and the possible dangers that this entails. With a large-scale power outage, of course, the hospital is not only affected, but the entire city and so there is close contact between the authorities “We consult with all North Holland hospitals, the municipality and the GHOR,” says Bugel. “That is the medical care organization in the region to ensure that we are well prepared.”
Despite the tensions and the power outage in Spain and Portugal, there is no extra state of alertness in the OLVG. “We are always always alert to what is happening in the outside world and we are always well prepared.”