Hospital Evacuation Procedures

Hospitals are where you go when you are in trouble or need of medical assistance. Hospitals become overrun with additional patients during emergencies, but there are times when a hospital itself needs to be evacuated. Evacuations of a hospital need to be planned in advance and various scenarios need to be addressed in the master evacuation plan. Evacuation procedures for a hospital need to be understood and communicated with both staff and patients.

Notifications and Announcements

• Sound the alarm system that is connected throughout the entire facility as soon an occurrence is discovered that would warrant an evacuation of the hospital. Make sure that the flashing strobe lights go on as well since the benefit of utilizing both an audible and visual alarm system in a hospital warns patients and staff in both ways. Ensure that the alarm sounds and the lights flash throughout the entire building. Use the hospital's public address or speaker system to make an announcement that an evacuation of the facility is being enacted.

Call for Help

• Immediately call your local emergency dispatch center by dialing 9-1-1 and describe the situation and let them know that you have begun the process of evacuating the hospital. Contact any additional fire departments or emergency responders located closest to you. Also, contact the personnel in the hospital that are responsible for overall safety and security of the facility and notify them of the evacuation.

Get Patients to Safety

• The first thing in evacuating the hospital is to make sure that all patients are removed from the building. Patients who can walk on their own should follow the same evacuation path and route as staff to get to safety as quickly as possible. Evacuating the remaining patients involves using hospital staff to assist. Patients should be moved to alternate hospitals so that they can continue to receive the treatment and support they require. Patients who do not require continual medical attention should be evacuated to a designated safe location and their transport from that point can be coordinated after all have been evacuated.

Get Staff and Remaining Personnel to Safety

• Staff and hospital personnel that did not evacuate to assist with patients are to be evacuated in a manner that complies with the standard evacuation procedures of the hospital. All staff should be routed to the designated safe location so that they can be accounted for. It is essential that staff be evacuated in a safe and timely manner.