Emergency Preparedness With Oxygen

Oxygen User Emergency Preparedness Tips

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Accidents and emergencies can happen with and without warnings such as a severe snowstorm, hurricane, flood, or unexpected fire. When they do happen, everyone, including oxygen therapy users, needs to be able to act fast. To make sure that you’ll be prepared for anything, whether it’s an evacuation or a situation where you need to stay put, make sure that you’ve got your oxygen ready to go with you.

Get your power back

Power can get knocked out easily, but it’s not always easy to fix the problem. Contact your power company to see if you qualify for a priority list in the event that your power is knocked out. If you don’t qualify or there is no such list available, you may be able to receive a temporary generator from them free of charge for the duration of the power outage.

Keep extra batteries on hand

Those who use portable oxygen concentrators will have to ensure that they have enough power to run their machines until they can recharge any empty batteries. You should always have a fully-charged battery on hand to rotate out with your regular battery, but you should also keep additional batteries in storage.

However, storing lithium batteries for the long-term must be done carefully. To ensure that your battery doesn’t lose its capacity, you should store your batteries, ideally, at a 40% charge around 60°F. You can also rotate all your extra batteries to make sure that there is at least one that is fully charged and not in use.

Get to know your batteries

In an emergency, you’ll need to know exactly how much power you have left. Learn how long it takes to charge a battery from empty until it has a full charge, as well as how long your batteries typically last on your specific setting. With this information, you can better plan out whether you need to find alternative power and when.

Concetrator Emergency Preparedness

Know where (and how) to go

If you need to leave your home, make sure that you not only have a safe place to go to but a safe way to get there. If you plan on driving, keep your car filled with gas and your cellphone fully charged, along with additional chargers for cellphones as well as your oxygen concentrator to use in the car.

Your safe place may be a relative’s or friend’s home, but a hotel is also a good option. For oxygen users, public shelters may not be the best bet, as they may not have the facilities (e.g. backup power) to run or charge your equipment; however, if an emergency shelter is all that is available, let those in charge know you have oxygen requirements. Make sure that all family members, friends, caregivers know where you will be headed in the event of an emergency.

Talk to your doctor

In the event of an emergency in which power is precious, you may be able to reduce your oxygen intake to save your battery. Speak with your doctor to see if you would be able to lower your oxygen flow rate or dose in the event of an emergency but remember only to do so if the doctor gives his or her explicit approval!

Keep an emergency contact handy

Ensure that you have an emergency contact number handy and visible to others for uncertain circumstances. Make sure that the emergency contact number is updated and includes your name and emergency contact’s name. Putting a sticker on the oxygen concentrator is a good idea.

Staying warm during extreme cold

In case of a power outage and severe cold, the primary concern is to stay warm. Some ways to stay warm are wrapping around warm clothing (cotton-fabric preferred for oxygen users), eating hot food and drink, exercising, and using sleeping bags. The urge to use the car heating system overnight should be avoided as can prove fatal due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

Plan ahead

Don’t wait for an emergency to start preparing. You want everything ready in the hopefully unlikely event that you will need it. If disaster does strike, however, you can rest a little easier knowing that you’ve taken steps ahead of time to make sure you won’t worry about where you’ll get your oxygen.

Video on Severe Weather Tips for COPD Patients

Date Modified: September 27, 2022
Date Published: May 7, 2018

Reference:

Heating and Ventilation — Winter Storm Information. (2021). NDSU.Edu. https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/winterstorm/winter-storm-information-family-1/stalled…-ut-safe/heating-and-ventilation

McEvoy, J. (2021, February 17). Texas’ Harris County Sees More Than 300 Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Cases Amid Power Outages. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jemimamcevoy/2021/02/16/texas-harris-county-sees-more-than-200-carbon-monoxide-poisoning-cases-amid-power-outages/?sh=1944cb8936c0

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Scott joined American Medical Sales and Rentals in 2008 as a Web Manager and Content Writer. He is a writer and designer. He is extensively trained on oxygen therapy products from leading manufacturers such as Inogen, Respironics, Chart, Invacare, ResMed and more.

Scott works closely with respiratory therapists and oxygen specialists to educate the community about oxygen therapy products, COPD, asthma and lung diseases. He writes weekly columns and is passionate about educating the community on oxygen therapy and respiratory issues.

About Scott Ridl:

Scott joined American Medical Sales and Rentals in 2008 as a Web Manager and Content Writer. He is a writer and designer. He is extensively trained on oxygen therapy products from leading manufacturers such as Inogen, Respironics, Chart, Invacare, ResMed and more. Scott works closely with respiratory therapists and oxygen specialists to educate the community about oxygen therapy products, COPD, asthma and lung diseases. He writes weekly columns and is passionate about educating the community on oxygen therapy and respiratory issues.

2 thoughts on “Oxygen User Emergency Preparedness Tips

  1. Great points all! A lot of today’s automobiles have an electrical outlet inside the vehicle but they don’t put out enough power to use on somethings such as a blow dryer or curling iron won’t work. Test your portable oxygen devices &/or battery chargers for your devices on a nice Spring day so you’ll know if your automobile will be a way to keep your oxygen going…. you’ll only need to have the car running long enough to charge the battery (ies) that way you won’t run out of oxygen or gasoline during one of those sudden massive storms! Don’t forget to open the garage door at least half way to let the fumes out!

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