Oklahoma tornado tests hospitals' Y2K preparedness

From Medical Correspondent Eileen O'Connor

OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma (CNN) -- When a powerful tornado struck Oklahoma City recently, it caused a breakdown in internal hospital systems, such as elevators and electricity powering critical equipment.

Similar breakdowns are possible when dealing with the so-called Y2K computer bug.

Many government and private facilities are gearing for possible interruptions in services when computer systems are faced with the year 2000 date. Systems that have not yet been converted may read 2000 as 1900, a problem known as the Y2K bug.

Hospitals in Oklahoma learned some valuable lessons from the tornado experience that could be helpful when the clock turns to midnight on December 31.

For example, while in-house generators were adequate for providing electricity, some hospitals realized that they needed more fuel than they had anticipated. And while contingency plans for downed phone lines involved using cell phones, those systems ended up overloaded.

"Every contingency plan ... was tested to the extreme to give us an opportunity to observe any weaknesses that the plan may have," said Randu Musick of Integrated Health Services.

Based on their newfound experiences, Oklahoma hospitals and nursing homes are redrawing their plans for Y2K. They are contacting power companies and other service vendors to check their Y2K compliance, and they are advising some firms, such as cellular phone companies, to expand services.

Administrators also now plan to have more staff on hand to handle patient care.

Members of Congress looking into Y2K issues believe Oklahoma's experiences could be useful nationwide. However, getting a handle on the extent of the possible problems has proven difficult, as only 25 percent of hospitals and nursing homes have responded to questionnaires on Y2K issues from government and industry groups.