Can I carry my own pulse ox?

JSlovex2 · Jun 11, 2011

You'll find a number of old threads on this topic.
I would never purchase equipment to use at work for 2 reasons:
1. You are taking the responsibility away from your employer for providing necessary equipment in good working order. As long as you and your co-workers are willing to buy it, they never will.
2. Liability, liability and liability. If you bring in any equipment of your own, it must be safety checked, calibrated and maintained by your employer's biomedical department, or you will be responsible for any patient harm arising from it's use, such as electric shock, or inaccurate results that result in failure to detect a change in patient condition or failure to treat.
Not worth it.

i agree with not purchasing equipment bc it takes responsibility away from the employer. i don't think i would do it, but i also have a "pulse ox problem" so i won't say never.

OP - have you or have you considered bringing this to the attention of your supervisor or administration? i know it might seem "petty" but anything that impacts production time (like running around looking for a pulse ox) is of interest to them. maybe you should consider sending an email to someone who matters.

Nurse424 · Jun 11, 2011

How exactly does a portable pulse ox get calibrated or maintained? It either works or it doesn't and if there is any question one can try to get/wait for a second unit from someone else to verify. Electric shock? I seriously doubt a portable unit has enough volts/amps to do so; in fact it doesn't, but check with your supplier/manufacturer if you are unsure. Also If the employer isn't supplying enough to begin with they are probably not going to just because it's requested.
I see plenty of nurses bringing in electronic stethoscopes without any problem; I still don't see this as being any different. Now a BP machine or something that has the potential of having holes in the tubing or is run on 110/220 volts and CAN be maintained would probably be a different story.

Never heard of ever calibrating a portable pulse ox.....but dumber things have happened!! SHOCK@!?!??! Seriously????? AND, brand new ones are being sold on Ebay every day for 30-40.00!!!! :smokin:

siafulinux · Jun 11, 2011

Never heard of ever calibrating a portable pulse ox.....but dumber things have happened!! SHOCK@!?!??! Seriously????? AND, brand new ones are being sold on Ebay every day for 30-40.00!!!!

Exactly :). Also having one you'll always have one around to check if friends/family need to be checked; probably not going to happen everyday, but you never know. And for the price, it can't be beat.

It's certainly worth me spending the $30-$40 to have one and make my life at work a little easier than to wait on my facility to provide more of them or having to wait for someone else to get done before my patient gets checked.

SpEdtacular, MSN, RN, EMT-P · Jun 11, 2011

It might be against hospital policy to use outside equipment because it hasn't been "inspected" and might not be "up to hospital standards" :nono:

(Who are they kidding? It'll probably be a lot nicer but still rules are rules)

Florencebyondthepale · Jun 11, 2011

I would speak to your manager about their feelings about this, but I think it would be a liability issue. The pulse ox would have to be approved and calibrated/tested by biomedical staff because there is no other way to determine that it is giving an accurate reading. If your personal pulse ox is giving falsely high or low readings and you are charting and providing care based on inaccurate readings, the hospital would not support you if it came down to a legal issue because you were not using authorized equipment.

It sounds like the hoarding issue needs to be addressed. Maybe staff needs to "check out" the pulse ox so its whereabouts are known. Or force the hoarders to obtain a reading on all patients.

BetterMeRN · Jun 11, 2011

I have the same problem at the hospital I'm employed. Nurses hiding equipment and machines not working. I have the same portable pulse ox. I use it at work, my manger thinks it's cool that I bring my own. It's a good way to see right away what your patients o2 sat is without going on a hunt. I just make sure if I need to call the doctor I get the one used in the hospital first.

Home Health Columnist / Guide · Jun 11, 2011

a pulse oximeter is classified as a medical device; requires a prescription for purchase as dme to be covered under insurance health plans.

one needs to have a medical order for use in any inpatient facility + home health. most hospitals cover this aspect of law by having "pulse ox prn" as part of standard orders; our home health agency added it to standard orders 2 yrs ago when employer began providing pulse ox testing.

us: fda covers regs on device.

this guidance document identifies the classification regulation and product codes for pulse oximeters...
medical device reporting - 21 cfr part 803
incidents in which a device may have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury must to be reported to fda under the medical device reporting program. in addition, certain malfunctions must also be reported. the mdr regulation is a mechanism for fda and manufacturers to identify and monitor significant adverse events involving medical devices. the goals of the regulation are to detect and correct problems in a timely manner....
pulse oximeters - premarket notification submissions [510(k)s] - fda

britian: pulse oximeters ð particular requirements

descriptors: electromedical equipment, pulse oximeters, safety requirements, accident prevention, detail specifications, protection against ...
[color=#0e774a]bbs.6jc.cn/pdf/o/en%20865.pdf

regulation regarding purchase of a pulse oximeter

federal agencies are very adamant in enforcing strict compliance with the laws and regulations regarding the use of oximeter. heavy fines and punitive penalties are to be placed upon companies and individuals who will not follow the policies of the observation of the legibility of the purchasing party for buying pulse oximeters.
article source: http://ezinearticles.com/5868336

issues involved include:

a. healthcare facilities are required to provide sufficient diagnostic equiipment for patient use: report up the chain of command issues with lack of supply.

b. purchase youself, you are shifting legal responsibility from employer to yourself. malpractice insurance will not cover you when dragged into court of law.

c. if brought before board of nursing re use personal device and found violating medical device laws, potential to lose license.

just not worth the risk.

bjaeram · Jun 11, 2011

We are not allowed to bring in any equipment without it going through biomed. They have a schedule to check all equipment for safety. Every piece of equipment has a sticker and number and is tracked.

If we bring in a fan or something it has to get approved. Pts cant' even bring in things like curling irons without them being approved.

I would call your biomed department and ask if it's okay.

littleneoRN · Jun 11, 2011

If we bring in a fan or something it has to get approved. Pts cant' even bring in things like curling irons without them being approved.

Ok, I'm in agreement with not bringing in a portable pulse ox because it's medical equipment, but this is just plain ridiculous. The only thing our families can't bring without approval is Christmas lights. We have families who bring CD players, portable DVD players, laptops, curling irons, shavers, humidifiers, white noise machines, baby swings and seats, etc all the time! Can your patients plug in their cell phones to charge? What about bring their own electric wheelchair? Sorry, I know it's not your personal policy, so I'm not blaming you. I just can't believe it!

chorkle · Jun 12, 2011

I bought a Respironics finger pulse-ox back in '98 when I got out of the Army.
Went to a nurse job fair in Marietta where they company is located.
Hulluva deal @ $125.00. (They're about $300.00 + these days)
Kept it with me ever since. Wouldn't be without it.
Really helps when institution probes fail or you just need to be quick about it.
30.00 you say? I'd be all over it like a fat-kid on cake!
Do it...

Another awesome post!!

allnurses Guide · Jul 3, 2011

Ok, I'm in agreement with not bringing in a portable pulse ox because it's medical equipment, but this is just plain ridiculous. The only thing our families can't bring without approval is Christmas lights. We have families who bring CD players, portable DVD players, laptops, curling irons, shavers, humidifiers, white noise machines, baby swings and seats, etc all the time! Can your patients plug in their cell phones to charge? What about bring their own electric wheelchair? Sorry, I know it's not your personal policy, so I'm not blaming you. I just can't believe it!

What can't you believe? This policy has been in place in every hospital I have worked in over the past 15 years. Every item of electrical equipment brought into a hospital needs to be inspected for electrical safety, current leakage testing etc by the BME dept, regardless of whether it's an electric razor or an artificial heart.

linearthinker, DNP, RN · Jul 4, 2011

Thanks to NRSKaren for taking the time for that great post. She is absolutely right.

No, I would never supply my own pluse ox. It is not my responsibility to supply durable medical equipment, and I would not be accepting the liability for same. When I needed critical equipment or personnel to do my job and it wasn't available, I charted it that way each and every time. In black and white, in the permanent record. Admin got the point and provided what they were supposed to PDQ.