the weather and vent pt........

I was with a vent client one night when it was storming. The power went out, I was caught off guard. The patient was sleeping. The vent alarm did not go off and the vent did not immediately go over to battery power. In the dark I reached over and removed the vent from the patient's trach and managed not to wake him. He was ok and was breathing independently. His Dad rushed in and was like a chicken with his head cut off trying to find the emergency lighting and all. The power came back on after 40 minutes and I had a longer shift summary to write that night. Hope that never happens to me again.