Safety of Electro-Medical Equipment in Floods in Austere Environment

Abstract

Pakistan is prone to floods. In 2010, floods in North-Western Pakistan caused devastation in wide areas. Electro-medical equipment is very expensive and without proper equipment adequate surgery is not possible. We retrospectively analyzed how expensive electro-medical equipment got damaged during floods of 2010 at a district-level hospital in North-Western Pakistan and how we could have saved this equipment or reduced the damage to the minimum. The article provides the lessons learned and recommendations aimed to prevent or minimize damage to the valuable and expensive equipment in the areas prone to floods. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2018;page 1 of 3).