HIBAPRESS – Mohammed Zerriouh
The power outage at Al-Hassani Hospital in the city of Nador was not just a transient technical failure, but an incident that re-raised pressing questions about the readiness of this health facility to deal with emergencies, and its ability to ensure the continuity of medical services under various conditions, given the vital role it plays in receiving patients and handling urgent cases.
According to available data, an attempt to repair the malfunction led to a professional accident in which two technicians sustained varying degrees of burns. One of them suffered burns to his neck, while the second sustained injuries covering large areas of his body. This incident places the conditions of technical intervention and occupational safety procedures under scrutiny, pending official clarifications that reveal the circumstances of the accident and the health status of the injured.
The sensitivity of the situation increases given the nature of the facilities that may be affected by such outages. Intensive care units, operating rooms, and the emergency department are among the units that cannot tolerate any unsecured disruption in the electrical supply. This makes it imperative to disclose the measures taken to ensure the continuity of medical equipment operation, to avoid any potential repercussions on patients and the services provided to them.
At the heart of these questions lies the issue of the effectiveness of backup generators, alarm systems, and automatic intervention, and their ability to ensure a smooth transition to alternative power sources in the event of malfunctions. The readiness of these systems is not merely a routine technical procedure, but a fundamental element in the safety system within hospital institutions, as some medical equipment is linked to uninterrupted power continuity.
The incident also poses particular importance regarding the status of the blood bank, which requires the preservation of blood and its derivatives under precise storage and cooling conditions. With data circulating that suggests the repair of the malfunction could take between four and six hours, the necessity of clarifying the precautionary measures adopted to protect the inventory and ensure the continuous operation of cooling devices emerges, without implying that the blood or its derivatives have been damaged.
Between the necessity of repairing the malfunction and the continuation of health services, the local public opinion awaits clarifications from the hospital administration and the relevant health authorities regarding the causes of the outage, the circumstances of the technicians' injuries, and the extent of the incident's impact on vital services. This incident also reaffirms that the maintenance of technical infrastructure, securing alternative energy sources, and enhancing occupational safety conditions are not secondary details, but fundamental responsibilities to ensure the safety of patients and health personnel and to preserve the continuity of the public utility.
