To maintain daily operations and patient care services, health care facilities need to develop an Emergency Water Supply Plan (EWSP) to prepare for, respond to, and recover from a total or partial interruption of the facilities’ normal water supply.
Water supply interruptions can be caused by several types of events such as natural disaster, failures of community water systems, construction damage, or acts of terrorism. Water supplies can (and do) fail, so it’s imperative to understand and address how patient safety, quality of care, and hospital operations will be impacted by these interruptions.
Hospitals must be able to respond to and recover from a water supply interruption–EWSPs can provide a framework for response and recovery by providing the guidance to assess water usage, response capabilities, and water alternatives.