We strive our whole life to pursue various secrets of having a healthy life because the happiness of a family is strongly linked with the health of loved ones. But, being sick is part of life, and even though visiting hospitals is not in your wish list, you must always be hospital ready in terms of various tips that you shall always follow.
Modern medicine has given us myriads of innovation, but it has also brought a lot of challenges and problems for the hospitals that were unheard of before. Therefore, we have listed here the five most common technological hazards of modern hospitals so that you go into a hospital with total awareness about potential loopholes.
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Improper cleaning of reusable instruments:
A couple of years back, a major hospital in the United States suffered a wave of infection due to the usage of improperly cleaned duodenoscopes. This incident underlined the importance of adequate cleaning of the reusable instruments. Therefore, it must be assured that all the staff is entirely aware of the correct cleaning protocol and is adhering to it one hundred percent so that the spread of such infection can be avoided in the future.
Lastly, be aware that if you incur severe physical damage due to such an incident, you might have grounds to file a medical malpractice lawsuit with the help of an experienced Miami medical malpractice attorney.
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Malfunctioning ventilator alarms:
Ventilators are critical machines that are meant for patients who are battling to keep themselves afloat in this world. Therefore, if staff fails to respond to ventilator alarms or ventilator suffers a notification failure, it can prove to be deadly for the patient. Hence, hospital administration must pay close attention to the maintenance of medical machinery, especially critical units like ventilators.
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Infusion errors:
Errors in infusions can prove to be deadly for the patients, and it has become common despite the general awareness among the staff. Most of the infusion pumps have integrated safety systems that prevent IV errors like the IV free flow. Therefore, staff must make sure that the infusion pumps are not physically damaged before they use them on a patient. Moreover, they must also observe the drip chamber to check if there is any unwarranted medication flow.
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Infections from heater-cooler devices:
Heater-cooler devices are commonly used in heart surgeries, but they are reported to cause infections in patients. Researchers have not been able to identify the channel of this infection, but they have made an informed guess that patients must not come in contact with water, as it can cause infections. Therefore, the staff must ensure that the patients do not come into contact with water from heater-cooler devices so that this extra suffering can be avoided.
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Radiation hazards:
Radiation hazards are real, especially for the staff working in hybrid operating rooms with built-in X-ray systems because they are mostly unaware of the precautionary measures that must be taken to shield themselves from the harms of X-rays. Therefore, the hospital administration must ensure that the staff in hybrid ORs are provided with the essential personal protection equipment and is as trained as the staff working in the radiology department.
Therefore, next time when you go on the praising spree of modern medicine, be aware of all the challenges that it has created as well so that well-informed discussions can lead to effective solutions.