On Saturday, August 5, Damage Control held their Annual Summer Picnic at Van Fleets Grove!
Issues with Restoration in Hospitals – Part Two
Along with the unique issues that arrive when performing restoration services in hospitals, there are numerous departments that play important roles in the process, each of which has its own concerns. Just a few include:
- Medical Department
- Health and Safety
- Nursing Department
- Risk Management
- Infection Control
- Maintenance
- Administration
- Building Operations Center
- Housekeeping
Each of the departments mentioned have a particular set of requirements to be met, along with corresponding deadlines. Specific protocols are often necessary for each depending on their needs.
All the departments will make important decisions based on the information provided by the restoration company. For example, the Nursing Department may schedule more hours so that patients can be moved. Risk Management and Infection Control will be tracking the time passing since the incident occurred to monitor microbial growth. The Maintenance staff and Building Operations Center may have overtime to assist with mitigation.
In order to ensure that restoration runs smoothly, exceptional communication is needed between the restoration company and the hospital’s departments. Documenting details by keeping thorough records is also extremely important.
The plan devised by the restoration company must take into account the segregation of affected areas and the relocation of patients. It is also imperative to provide thorough diagnostics as quickly as possible to determine which components are salvageable. A thermal imaging camera if often useful to quickly find damage.
All items with mold damage, electrical damage or questionable integrity will need to be discarded, and extra care is needed when using drying equipment in any hospital or healthcare facility.
Blueprints of the affected areas that provide a more specific overview should be obtained to aid in mapping of migrating water. Suspect material in the components, such as asbestos, can be found regardless of the age of the building. It is important to consider whether drying the asbestos fireproofing is the optimal choice or if re-insulating is necessary. Also, the restoration company’s investigation should determine whether the drying procedure will compromise the integrity of the fireproofing capabilities and structural integrity of the insulation.
The ultimate goal after restoration has been finished is for the documentation to be completed and clearance to be obtained. A third party should be used to avoid conflict when evaluating the efforts of the restoration company. A final, thorough cleaning is also vital to ensure the safety and health of those who will be re-populating the affected areas.
Damage Control has extensive experience in restoration and mitigation for hospitals and healthcare facilities, and is ready to help your facility today. For questions about hospital damage restoration, contact one of our professionals now.
Damage Control Newsletter Spring 2014
Keystone College
If you walk into the warehouse at Damage Control, you will notice that there are signs posted throughout that read “Prepared Readiness.” These are not just mere words, but a mindset that prepared everyone for what took place on Friday, April 17th, 2014.
Damage Control employees were called by Keystone College to assist with the cleaning and deodorization of a fire that occurred in the first floor mechanical room of the Hollinshead dormitory. This in and of itself is not an unusual call for a typical business day at Damage Control. What made this call different was the timing — the call came in at 1:30AM.
The College, looking for assistance, needed crews to start working immediately so the displaced students could return to their rooms. Operations Manager, Mark Bickelman and a crew of technicians were on-site within the hour to assess the situation and come up with a plan of action. During the inspection, we were told that staff members attempted to put out the fire using eight Ansul powder fire extinguishers. Although this is something we regularly deal with, the extinguishers were discharged into the trash chute from the fourth floor bathroom, requiring our crews to think outside the box. Our duct cleaning equipment was utilized to clean out the chute in order to provide a thorough job in a very short amount of time. Even without any sleep, the crew was quick to think on their feet!
This chute is connected to the bathroom on all floors and terminates at the trash container in the mechanical room on the first floor, where the fire was contained. A sprinkler head discharged water, making clean up even more complicated as it mixed with soot and fine powder. Because our crews are trained to be prepared, there was nothing that upset them or stopped them from pushing through to get the job done.
The College needed all of the cleaning completed by the end of the day as they had scheduled air quality testing after the cleaning was completed. The crews started by removing the bulk of the Ansul powder with HEPA vacuums and dusting cloths so that all surfaces could then be washed with a deodorizing solution. The exterior grounds were pressure washed to remove fire debris and powder residue from the sidewalks and parking lot areas.
The efforts of the crew paid off as the work was completed ahead of the deadline. Air quality results came back by 3:30pm as favorable, allowing the students to return as directed by the College.
First Responders Event
Damage Control held its 4th Annual First Responders Appreciation Night on March 13th at our facility in Eynon. In its largest turnout yet, over 120 local first responders attended! Food and beverages were provided by Accentuate Catering and many local businesses donated gift certificates and gift baskets to be raffled. One highlight of the evening included Officer Munley of the Archbald Police Department who was presented with a plaque to commemorate being the recipient of the Law Enforcement Hero Award from the Red Cross. It was our pleasure to present of $500.00 check to the Mayfield Hose Company who were the winners of our grand prize donation!
NEIU
It was no surprise that Damage Control, Inc. (DCI) received a call that the local NEIU 19 in Archbald was taking on water, seeing as how it was only 1 degree outside. What did turn out to be a surprise was the fact the water was pouring inside the building through a piping system that was no longer used! Water was raining inside the 34,000 SF facility through a conduit that was decommissioned years ago. It was reported that a worker was dispatched to repair a leaking hydrant outside the building and that the worker mistakenly opened up a valve sending thousands of gallons rushing toward the open pipes above the ceiling grid within the facility. The resulting flood and noise of pipes shaking and rattling the building were so violent that a maintenance worker was driven from the building.
Ceiling tiles and insulation were crashing to the floor along with cascades of water, soaking carpets and fixtures. Walls, desks, chairs, computers, boxes and partitions were all impacted by the water intrusion. Initial guesses by NEIU personnel who witnessed the deluge estimated that the building would need to be closed for a month. Fortunately, although not completely repaired, workers were back in their stations in 6 days while crews from Damage Control worked double shifts to help return the structure and the occupants to normalcy.
Safety of the occupants was our number one priority during the project. The services of Cocciardi and Associates were engaged to monitor air quality and general health and safety of the environment. Throughout the project, large air scrubbers were deployed within the structure to filter the air through HEPA filters, removing contaminants and particulates.
Our drying efforts helped to save all of the walls and wallpaper within the building while maintaining indoor quality at more than acceptable limits. Analytical reports came back delcaring that the environment was 90 times cleaner than permissible by OSHA limits and independent testing corroborated DCI’s conclusions regarding the drying progress.
Many questions and concerns were brought up during the project with numerous meetings to help keep the occupants informed and educated. “Our best way to keep everyone informed is with honest, open communication. Keeping everything transparent eliminates doubt and generates a much calmer atmosphere,” said Jeff Skrilow, who acted as Project Manager for this particular project. “It was a pleasure working with the staff at NEIU 19. They were true professionals that helped keep the project flowing smoothly.”
Employee of the Year – Sarah Lukasik
Sarah was hired to fill our Production Assistant position in December of 2011. Within a very short time, it was apparent that Sarah would not only be a perfect fit for the company, but an invaluable asset. “She was such a fast learner and was able to handle anything we threw at her,” says Executive Assistant, Sarah Cain. “She was a perfect fir for our close-knit, family-like atmosphere.” Sarah’s job title changed earlier this year to Administrative Assistant, which better reflects all of the duties that Sarah does including Accounts Payable, Payroll, ordering materials and communicating regularly with customers. Her hard work, willingness to help everyone and dedication made her an easy choice for our 2013 Employee of the Year.
July Employee of the Month
Jon Feldman (pictured below) is Damage Control’s July Employee of the Month!
Issues with Restoration in Hospitals – Part One
There are typically a unique set of issues that arise when performing remediation and restoration in hospitals. There are many needs that should be taken into account, including:
- Risk management
- Procedure scheduling
- Safety and health of occupants
- Redirection of occupants
- Available space
There are special considerations anytime a restoration involves the housing of a multitude of residents, but it’s important to remember that nearly all of the occupants in a hospital are at risk in some way.
Damage Control is an experienced restoration contractor who has worked in many hospital settings such as:
- Pediatric intensive care unit
- Bone marrow transplant unit
- Operating rooms
- Neonatal intensive care unit
- Patient rooms and more
The safety and health of the patients and those performing the remediation are always our highest priority. In order to maintain the highest safety standards and perform efficiently, every project is carefully evaluated using a similar protocol.
- We identify the water source and eliminate it.
- We document and map the boundaries of the water.
- We remove items that cannot be saved or protect them with the appropriate covering.
- Under controlled conditions, materials that can’t be dried with a 48 hour period are removed, with some exceptions. These items are stored and sealed in bags and HEPA vacuumed before prior to being removed.
- We remove carpet that is still wet after the first 48 hours and we also remove carpet that could potentially cause environmental issues.
- We use HEPA vacuums and clean with a mild detergent solution.
- We consult with Infection Control to find out what they’re preferred brand of hospital grade cleaner and avoid bleach because of odor problems and its corrosive nature.
- We always present the Material Safety Data Sheet to Risk Management or Infection Control to obtain written permission for usage. In some instances the hospital staff may apply their preferred brand.
- To avoid tracking we use tack mats.
For additional information on hospital restoration procedures, look for the upcoming post, Issues with Restoration in Hospitals – Part Two, or contact a Damage Control consultant today.