Who shall be responsible for developing an emergency plan in the event of medical air loss at a Category 2 facility?

• A. Chief engineer
• B. Head of maintenance
• C. Facility staff
• D. Authority having jurisdiction

Answer: (C)

Emergency planning for a medical air loss is handled by the facility staff. They are the ones who operate the system daily, know where patients are located, which units rely on medical air, and what backup resources exist (such as portable cylinders or backup compressors). They bring together clinical teams—nurses, respiratory therapists, physicians—with facilities leadership, biomedical engineering, and administration to create a plan that is practical and actionable within the specific layout and patient needs of the facility. The plan should define roles, steps, communication paths, escalation, and recovery procedures tailored to that environment. While the authority having jurisdiction will review, approve, and enforce standards, and engineers will maintain the equipment, the content and development of the emergency plan come from those who manage patient care and daily operations.