The International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO) has published the Manual of Recommended Practice for Medical Gas Resiliency, a comprehensive approach to ensuring the availability and effectiveness of medical gases in healthcare facilities.

On Sept. 15, 2021, IAPMO initiated the medical gas resiliency group to create a manual to provide code-enhanced and adoptable language for medical gas piping systems. The task group's work culminated in the release of this manual, which integrates the expertise and insights from two guidance practices, each with its own distinct scope and purpose. While developed as a guidance document, it is written in mandatory language so building and health departments can easily adopt and codify the requirements. Additionally, this stand-alone document includes excerpts from IAPMO's Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC). The task group consisted of industry experts from across the nation.

"Thank you to our volunteers and staff who worked diligently on this manual for the last year. Your work helped provide innovative and scientific solutions to help make our medical gas systems more resilient for the next pandemic," IAPMO Vice President of Technical Services and Research Christoph Lohr said. "The work this group has done has helped initiate further thought into making sure that our medical gas systems are able to be operated with flexibility in mind. That flexibility to respond to challenging conditions can give medical professionals a better position to provide care, and that care can make a huge difference in someone's life."  

The IAPMO manual may be downloaded for free at
 https://iapmo.org/media/32035/medical-gas-resiliency-manualpdf.pdf.