Journals / Phoenix Medical Journal / 2026 / Cilt: 8 Sayı: 1

Beyond Backup Systems: Team-Based Crisis Management During a Pediatric Operating Room Power Failure

Yedek Sistemlerin Ötesinde: Çocuk Ameliyathanesinde Elektrik Kesintisi Sırasında Ekip Temelli Kriz Yönetimi

Hande Kekreli Göylüsün(SAĞLIK BİLİMLERİ ÜNİVERSİTESİ, İZMİR DR. BEHÇET UZ ÇOCUK HASTALIKLARI VE CERRAHİSİ SAĞLIK UYGULAMA VE ARAŞTIRMA MERKEZİ)0009-0002-8860-9138
Gül Özlem Yıldırım(EGE ÜNİVERSİTESİ, ATATÜRK SAĞLIK HİZMETLERİ MESLEK YÜKSEKOKULU)0000-0001-9534-8680
Pages
50–51
Publication Date
2026-03-31
DOI
—
🏛️Bibliographic metadata and full text access for this article are provided via DergiPark.
DergiPark Record ↗
✨

AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

In unexpected operating room emergencies, team-based crisis management, effective leadership, and clear communication play a critical role in maintaining patient safety.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

🎯
Objective & Hypothesis:Objective: Operating rooms are high-risk clinical environments that require an uninterrupted energy supply to ensure patient safety.
📊
Key Findings & Data:Although the main power supply was restored shortly thereafter, a technical failure in the generator system resulted in a complete loss of electrical power lasting approximately 12–13 minutes.
💡
Conclusion & Impact:In unexpected operating room emergencies, team-based crisis management, effective leadership, and clear communication play a critical role in maintaining patient safety.
🔬Design:Diğer
📍Scope:Comprehensive Sample
⚙️Variables:Ameliyathane Acilleri · Elektrik Kesintisi · Hasta Güvenliği

Abstract

Objective: Operating rooms are high-risk clinical environments that require an uninterrupted energy supply to ensure patient safety. Although power outages are rare, they can rapidly lead to life-threatening situations, particularly in pediatric patients under anesthesia. Case Presentation: In a pediatric hospital, three operating rooms were actively in use during the morning hours when an unexpected power outage occurred. Although the main power supply was restored shortly thereafter, a technical failure in the generator system resulted in a complete loss of electrical power lasting approximately 12–13 minutes. During this period, anesthesia machines and monitoring systems became nonfunctional. Under the leadership of the anesthesia team, prompt crisis management was implemented; manual ventilation was maintained, surgical procedures were safely suspended, and patients were transferred out of the operating room in a controlled manner. Conclusion: This case demonstrates that technical backup systems alone may be insufficient to ensure patient safety. In unexpected operating room emergencies, team-based crisis management, effective leadership, and clear communication play a critical role in maintaining patient safety.

Özet

Amaç: Ameliyathaneler, hasta güvenliği açısından kesintisiz enerji kaynağına mutlak gereksinim duyulan yüksek riskli alanlardır. Elektrik kesintileri nadir görülmekle birlikte, özellikle anestezi altındaki pediatrik hastalarda hızla yaşamı tehdit eden durumlara yol açabilmektedir. Olgu Sunumu: Bir çocuk hastanesinde sabah saatlerinde üç ameliyathane salonu aktif olarak kullanılmaktayken beklenmeyen bir elektrik kesintisi meydana gelmiştir. Normal elektrik kısa sürede geri gelmesine rağmen, jeneratör sistemindeki teknik arıza nedeniyle yaklaşık 12–13 dakika boyunca tam enerji kaybı yaşanmıştır. Bu süreçte anestezi cihazları ve monitörizasyon sistemleri devre dışı kalmıştır. Anestezi ekibi liderliğinde hızlı bir kriz yönetimi uygulanmış; manuel ventilasyon sağlanmış, cerrahi işlemler güvenli şekilde durdurulmuş ve hastalar kontrollü biçimde ameliyathaneden transfer edilmiştir. Sonuç: Bu olgu, teknik yedek sistemlerin tek başına yeterli olmadığını; ameliyathane acil durumlarında ekip temelli kriz yönetimi, liderlik ve etkili iletişimin hasta güvenliği açısından kritik olduğunu göstermektedir.

🔖

Cite This Article

Göylüsün, H. K., Yıldırım, G. Ö. (2026). Beyond Backup Systems: Team-Based Crisis Management During a Pediatric Operating Room Power Failure. Phoenix Medical Journal, Cilt: 8 Sayı: 1, 50–51. https://ajindex.com/articles/1636100

📄 Full Text PDF Viewer

📄

PDF görüntüleyici hazırlanıyor...

References (12)

  1. Burgess F, Anderson J. Power and light: impact of electrical systems failure on the delivery of anesthetic care. In: Essentials of disaster anesthesia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2020. p. 323–334. doi:10.1017/9781316181454.026.
  2. Vetter A, Harman R, Stamper M, Titch J, Vacchiano C. Preparing for total power failure in the operating room. AANA J. 2019;87(4):291–297.
  3. Onyejesi C, Alsabri M, Del Castillo Miranda J, Aziz M, Ram M, Abady E, Abdelbar S. Pediatric emergency disaster preparedness: a narrative review of global disparities, challenges, and policy solutions. Int J Emerg Med. 2025;18. doi:10.1186/s12245-025-00856-w.
  4. Soncrant C, Mills P, Zubkoff L, Neily J, Mazzia L, Warner L, Gunnar W. Power failures during surgery: a 2000–2019 review of reported events in the Veterans Health Administration. J Patient Saf. 2020;17:e815–e820. doi:10.1097/PTS.0000000000000717.
  5. Carpenter T, Robinson S. Case reports: response to a partial power failure in the operating room. Anesth Analg. 2010;110(6):1644–1646. doi:10.1213/ANE.0b013e3181c84c94.
  6. Eichhorn J, Hessel E. Electrical power failure in the operating room: a neglected topic in anesthesia safety. Anesth Analg. 2010;110(6):1519–1521. doi:10.1213/ANE.0b013e3181dce129.
  7. Pai DR, Kumar VH, Sobana R. Perioperative crisis resource management simulation training in anaesthesia. Indian J Anaesth. 2024 Jan;68(1):36-44. doi: 10.4103/ija.ija_1151_23. Epub 2024 Jan 18. PMID: 38406342; PMCID: PMC10893817.
  8. Redjem ID, Huaulmé A, Jannin P, Michinov E. Crisis management in the operating room: a systematic review of simulation training to develop non-technical skills. Nurse Educ Today. 2025;106583. doi:10.1016/j.nedt.2025.106583.
  9. Johnson L, Rajabaliev E, Canipe K, Kazior M. Power outage: a simulation case for anesthesiology residents. MedEdPORTAL. 2025;21. doi:10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11523.
  10. Porteous G, Hoaglan C, Holland E, Carlstead M, Beecher R, Tatachar B, Johnson C. A cognitive aid for anesthetic and operating room management during a hospital power failure. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2017;32(Suppl 1):S66. doi:10.1017/S1049023X17001790.
  11. Colman N, Figueroa J, McCracken C, Hebbar K. Simulation-based team training improves team performance among pediatric intensive care unit staff. J Pediatr Intensive Care. 2019;8(2):83–91. doi:10.1055/s-0038-1676469.
  12. Sarwani N, Sulaiman S, O’Keeffe D. The impact of multidisciplinary in situ simulation-based team training in the operating room on patient outcomes: a scoping review. Cureus. 2025;17(7). doi:10.7759/cureus.87430.