PIR on a hospital

[keith915]

Could be helping carry out a PIR on a hospital soon through an agency. Done plenty of domestic and some commercial, but not hospitals.

Any tips, suggestions and best ways of going about testing would be v.much appreciated.

 

[telectrix]

don't get caught in a closet with a nurse.

 

[malcolmsanford]

Health and safety issues is one..................Access to isolation ..................if you working ward side access in general ...................IT systems...........................UPS systems ....................BMS systems.............Emergency services you don't want to trip them.

Best advice to give you really is put your hands in your pockets and listen before you attempt anything. Before you start your testing make sure every man and his dog know your working on the system, what is going to be isolated and how long for.

Hospitals can be really a challenge.

 

[Steve1412]

If you switch off a circuit and loads of alarms start going off along with nurses running all over the place call a solicitor quick!!!!!! lololol.

 

[Guest123]

Hospitals are a minefield when it comes to work like this.

You need to make sure the works & estates department are onside as they will help you out no end with access to switchrooms and organising shut downs etc.

If you're subbing to a firm then all this should already be arranged so everyone in all affected departments know's whats going on and when. You will need permits to work from the estates department and permits to isolate etc. Dont be surprised if you get told to stop what you're doing for no good reason as it will happen, assume nothing and anything UPS dont even go near particularly if it's near an operating theatre.

A good method statement is critical when working in a hospital otherwise it's like throwing a 6 to start!

There will probably be a stack of limitations anyway.

 

[Steve1412]

IIRC dont most hospital operate permit to work systems? ensuring you dont switch off someone life support by mistake!!

Sorry missed last post....lol

 

[Lucas123]

I spent 2 years at a hospital doing their periodics so we had a system in place which made life alot easier
This was only 5 years old so werent to bad in as muxh as everything was clearly labelled and all charts diagrams and etc were in place and readily available
with this particular hospital each ward comprised of 2 boards Priority and Low Priority and all the S/O's around the bed heads were split between the boards every other socket which enabled you to work on one board whilst not completely cutting patients / staff / visitors off.
we only had to 20% of each board so there was plenty of circuits that were easy and didnt cause to much disruption ie radials for medigas spur, bedpan washers loads of stuff like that
as the guys have stated liasing with the ward sisters and estates is the key some go out their way to help some wanna cause as much havoc as possible and asee it as a right drama and not that the fact of the matter is your testing the system that supples the machines and equipment they use day in day out to save peoples lives
one interesting area was the operating theatres this hospital had a system whereby the levels of current and resistance were displayed on a little panel inside the room and they would beep if they got to levels where a cb or rcbo would trip as these would not
im not quite sure how that system worked how they overrid the breakers but you can obviously understand why it was in place with nuisance tripping and similar but was very interesting none the less
all in all i would say a hospital is a great place to learn about testing it opens up every angle and really makes you think of what your doing and the consequences of testing proceedure
like i say i done this for two years with another experienced tester and took everything on board and really made me proud to be a spark and a tester having that responsibility and hey presto passed 2391 first time when i took it

 

[nickblake]

one thing i would do is ensure that your public liabilitys insurance covers you for this type of work . but other wise as the guys have said

 

[keith915]

Appreciate all the info guys. Unsure how the testing will pan out, whether I'll be by myself or with another bod I dont know until end of the week. It's as little daunting but whats the worst that can happen eh!?! Best check my insurance like you say Nick! Sounds like the experience will be very rewarding Lucas and good to put on the CV..

 

[Lucas123]

ive had a few jobs out of it because if you can test under those conditions then you can test anywhere mate !!
good luck