Guest guest Posted December 16, 2006 Report Share Posted December 16, 2006 Hello All. I just had a " new adventure " and learned the importance of keeping a stash of o2 tanks on hand. Seattle just had the worst wind storm in decades. Granted, having lost my medical insurance, I was low on o2 anyway. But wanted to offer up a suggestion to those of you who are newly o2 & CPAP dependant like me. Find out what services there are in your area that will be able to assist you in the event of a power outage that lasts a few days. The fire dept can only assist you with transport to a hospital in a situation like this. The ER will balk, because they will state that you are not technically " Sick " . Go anyway if you have to. It's also good to have a written directive from your pulmo that states how low you are allowed to let your saturation go before needing o2. I have been denied o2 before because it didnt go below 90 at the time of the pulse ox test. Our closest Apria offices were without power the next day, luckly I have power now or I would have spent the night in the waiting room of the ER next to the closest electrical outlet. I am checking with Apria about getting a battery pack for it. All I could think of to do was sleep sitting up while the power was off. I had to set my phone to wake me up so I could change tanks every hour because I had it on constant flow in hopes of forcing some o2 in me. Anyway, just wanted to give the new o2ers a " heads-up " . Make sure you have a back-up plan in case of a power outage. It was a terrible night for me. The next time I hear a fireman, nurse or emergency crisis person tell me to " monitor my o2 while I sleep and call 911 if I stop breathing " - I'll throw the phone!! LOL!! LynnA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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