Code red is an emergency code
which is used to alert employee and fire-fighting team in case a fire or
possibility of fire is detected within the hospital premise. Unexpected fire is
considered as an emergency situation and code red system is used to urgently
activate a set of action intended to control the fire and prevent any major
mishap. The system may slightly vary from hospital to hospital, depending upon
how the hospital is structured and organized. Here is a code red system that
can be used as a reference by hospitals. (Other codes - Code Blue, Code Pink)
CODE RED POLICY
‘Code Red’ is used as a code word
to alert employee and fire-fighting team on un-expected detection of fire or
possibility of fire anywhere within hospital’s premise. All employees are
expected to know the ‘Code Red’ system and must adhere to the action plan and
guidelines to be followed under this system. The intercom line with number 1111
is dedicated for calling and activating code red. This number can be called
from any intercom device and should be used only in the event of fire.
Employees are also expected to
know the location of the nearby fire-extinguisher and emergency exit route to
be used for the area where they work. A new employee in the hospital must be
oriented to the code red system on first day of the work. Following system
shall be used for Code Red.
CODE RED ALERT ACTIVATION
Code red shall be activated by any
employee of the hospital who detects or is informed about unexpected fire
flames, smoke, smell of smoke, unusual heat or any other indication of fire. The
fire or fire like situation could be observed in any part of the hospital,
including hospital’s exteriors and terrace. Code red should be activated even
if it is uncertain, if the situation is caused because of fire or not.
For activating code red the
intercom number ‘1111’ should be called from the nearest intercom device and ‘Code Red’ followed by the location
details shall be spoken. For example, if the fire is observed in the hospital’s
main kitchen, the employee should call 1111 and say, ‘Code Red alert – Hospital’s main kitchen’. This should be repeated
thrice in clear voice so that the receiver at the other end understand the code
and location.
The intercom line ‘1111’ is manned
by a telephone operator round the clock, who has access to public announcement
system. As soon as code red alert call is received, he/she immediately uses
public announcement system to announce ‘May
I have your attention please. Code Red at ….. area’. This activates code
red system in hospital. The announcement shall be repeated 3 times initially in
clear voice and then shall be repeated intermittently after that.
ACTION PLAN FOLLOWING CODE RED
ALERT
As soon as code red alert is announced, employee should follow the
action plan as described below
Employee near to the area where
fire is detected – As soon as code red is announced, all employee who are
near the location where fire is detected, should immediately assess the
severity of fire and follow R.A.C.E
·
Rescue all patients, visitors and staff from
immediate danger
·
Alarm others in the nearby area and call for
help
·
Confine the fire in the area by closing doors
and windows
·
Extinguish the fire if the fire is small, by
using fire extinguisher. Fire extinguisher should be
used as
per P.A.S.S. protocol, which is
o
Pull the pin of fire extinguisher
o
Aim the stream at the base of the fire
o
Squeeze the lever slowly and gently
o
Sweep from side to side
Employee near the fire area must also
·
Keep themselves safe from fire
·
Wait for direction from hospital’s authority or
fire-fighting team in-charge for any further actions
·
The doctor or head nurse of the area must decide,
if the central oxygen supply of their area, shall be shut. The valve of oxygen
supply can used for this purpose or the technician from maintenance department
can be asked for this
·
Shut all the fire doors in nearby areas to
prevent spread of smoke. These doors shall only be used for passing through
them
Hospital administrator – He/she will immediately reach the place and
taking care of his/her own safety, assess the situation. He/she shall ensure that R.A.C.E protocol is initiated
and shall also take decision on whether patients and others needs to be
evacuated and whether to call fire brigade immediately, without waiting for
hospital’s fire-fighting team to arrive. Any situational decisions shall be
taken by him/her till the time of reaching of fire-fighting team after which
the situation shall be handed over to them.
In absence of hospital administrator the in-charge of the area where
fire is detected shall perform these functions.
Employees who are away from the
fire location – All other employee shall must note the location where
fire has been announced and shall do following
·
Do not go towards the area where fire has been
detected, unless and until specifically called upon or required
·
Listen for additional instructions and be ready
to help in case required
· Prevent and other outsiders in their
vicinity from going towards the fire affected area
·
Keep all fire doors closed except while passing
through them, to prevent spread of fire and smoke
·
Be ready to evacuate if directed
·
Do Not use elevators
In-charge of Central oxygen
supply: He/she shall wait for instruction on whether Oxygen supply shall be
closed to the area where fire is detected and do according to the instruction.
He/she shall be available for any further instruction
Fire-fighting team – The fire-fighting
team is composed of 4 personnel from security and maintenance. The members of
fire-fighting team are trained on fire-fighting measures. Three teams are
constituted and it is ensured that one team is present in all shift. There is
an in-charge of each team. The firefighting team must do following on listening
code red alert
·
Reach to the place where fire has occurred on an
urgent basis
·
Take charge of fire-fighting measures from the
employees on sight
·
Pass on necessary instructions to the people
present over there for safety
·
Start controlling the fire as per the training
given to them
Fire-fighting team in-charge: The
in-charge should also reach the place along with other team members. The
in-charge will lead the fire-fighting team and will also do following
·
Assess the situation and determine, if the fire
is severe enough to call for external help
·
Decide whether evacuation plan needs to be
initiated
·
Decide whether Fire Brigade needs to be called
·
Any other decision that needs to be taken
Fire Brigade – In case fire
brigade is called, the fire-fighting team should continue their effort till the
time it reaches. Focus should be on safety. As soon as the fire brigade
arrives, the situation should be handed over to them and their direction should
be followed
Evacuation – In case
evacuation needs to be done, hospital’s evacuation plan for each area shall be
followed. This should be supervised by the fire-fighting team.
CODE RED – ALL CLEAR
The fire-fighting team in-charge has the authority to declare if the
situation has been tackled and is safe from fire. For this the in-charge calls
back ‘1111’ and says ‘Code Red – All Clear’. On getting this information, the
operator then announces the same on public announcement system. Employee on
listening ‘Code Red – All Clear’ can assume that the fire emergency has been
taken care of and they can resume back to their normal work.
The employees, patient and visitors of the area where fire occurred
shall be instructed, if the area can be used or not. Also, any patient or
employee if injured during the incident shall immediately be taken to hospital’s
emergency for treatment.
DOCUMENTATION
Code red event whenever occurred (real or mock) must be documented to
keep a record and for further improvement. This shall be done by preparing a
report within 3 days of occurrence of the incident. The report shall be
prepared by the in-charge of fire-fighting team in consultation with the employee
of area where fire was detected. The report must contain following points and
shall be submitted to CEO
·
Date and time of code red activation
·
Severity of fire
·
Measures taken for controlling fire (both by
employee and team)
·
Whether fire brigade was called?
·
Whether evacuation was done?
·
Losses – injuries, death, damage of property etc.
·
Probable causes of fire
·
Problems identified and corrective actions to be
taken
