s drips), and heartdefibrillators (emergency method of establishing a heartbeat). All of the aforementioneddevices contain embedded microchips critical to their functions. There are also intensivecare monitors that may not be Y2K compliant; these include heart monitors, bloodpressure monitors, and machines that provide additional oxygen and physical support. Finally, dialysis machines (help remove waste from a patients blood) and radiationequipment (x-rays, chemotherapy, etc..) are other critical pieces of medical equipment thatcould fail if the software controlling their functions is not Y2K compliant.Major Hospital is currently working with all of their medical equipment vendors toensure that all biomedical devices are Y2K compliant. We are confident that outstandingpatient care will not be interrupted, says Carol Hussman, information systems manager atMajor Hospital, and we are about 95 percent finished with all testing.One may think that in this day and age, with all of our technological advancements,that the Y2K problem would not be of concern to even the average computer user with afairly new system; much less a vital institution such as a hospital where thousands of ourloved ones lives hang in the balance. However, this is not the case. There are stillhospitals in the United States that are not equipped to deal with the Y2K problem. Moreover, the U.S. is not the only place where the Y2K problem is causing difficulties. Infact, almost a third of computer-related equipment in Australian hospitals, includingcardiac monitors and drug distribution systems, have failed the millennium test.The final aspect of patient care that may be affected is the mental health of thepatients. In a crisis situation, patients might panic; hospital staffs will have to be aware ofthis potential crisis. Major Hospital personnel are aware of this aspect of the Y2Kproblem and are focused on preventing any software problems that may lead to patientco...
