Hospital Command Center Equipment

Each Hospital Command Center (HCC) will need some basic equipment for amateur radio communications with the county Public Health Department Operations Center (PHDOC) and its host city's Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The following recommendations for voice and data communications equipment are provided to help hospitals build a compatible, effective and efficient hospital radio room operating environment.

A summary of the nets that HCCs are expected to monitor can be found here: Hospital Command Center Nets

For maximum efficiency and effectiveness, the ideal location of the radio equipment should meet the following requirements

• Inside or adjacent to the hospital's Command Center
  • During an emergency, almost all radio traffic will be to/from the Command Center. Minimizing the distance between the command center and the radio equipment means the operator will be away from the station much less.
  • If the radio room is immediately adjacent to the Command Center, command center staff can speak directly to other locations over the radio when necessary (as long as a license amateur radio operator is present). This can greatly speed up communications that require back-and-forth discussion.
  • A small anteroom off to the side of the Command Center is ideal.
• Quiet
  • For the radio operator: The radio operator can/will use a headset. But surrounding noise should be kept to a minimum (typical office-level noise is fine).
  • For others: The radio operator will need to speak into the microphone. Doing so shouldn't interrupt others in the room.
• Secure
  • The radio operator will usually bring their own personal effects and may need to bring additional equipment. These items should be secure when the radio operator needs to leave the station, such as to retrieve/deliver a message or visit the cafeteria or restroom.
• Separated from patients
  • Amateur radio operators should be separated as much as possible from patient areas to protect both the operators and patients from any possible exposure to diseases, pathogens, etc.
• Accessible
  • Amateur radio operators can access the location to participate in monthly practice or test nets and to perform regular maintenance (radio checks, software upgrades, etc.).
• Room for up to three people
  • In the general case, up to two operators are recommended. In particularly busy times, three operators could be useful. Each needs a place to sit and operate computers, radios, etc.

Reliable power is essential for emergency communications.

• Power during sustained outage (> 1 hour)
  • The amateur station should be powered by at least one dedicated 120V 15A circuit that has backup generator power via automatic transfer switch.
• Power during brief outages (< 1 hour)
  • The station should also be connected to a UPS which will sustain full operation for at least one hour. This will keep equipment operating during transfers between commercial and generator power, popped circuit breakers, or while repairs are performed for a generator or transfer switch fault or other localized electrical problems.

Hospital Station Equipment Diagrams (PDF)

The following equipment is considered the minimum equipment necessary for efficient and effective communications via amateur radio.

• VHF/UHF Antennas
  • Antenna
    • Recommendation: 2 x tri-band ground-plane antennas separated by 20 feet and free of near-field obstructions
    • These antennas can be shared between voice and packet operations
    • Feedline: In most cases, 1/2 inch Heliax (LDF4-50A) is recommended
  • Lightning Arrestor
    • Recommendation: DC-blocking, inductor-type arrestor for each feedline
• Voice Equipment
• Voice radio
  • Recommendation: 2 x dual-band (2m/70cm), dual receive radios
• Voice radio operating considerations
  • At a minimum, one separate radio is needed to maintain continuous monitoring of the Hospital Net.
    • If the radio is a dual-VFO radio, then the second VFO could be used for occasional monitoring of the city net.
    • If the two nets are on the same, dual-VFO radio, then reception may be lost on one VFO when transmitting on the other VFO. This is effectively being away from the net without checking out, and should be avoided.
    • Some radios allow reception on one VFO while transmitting on the other VFO **IF** the two VFOs are tuned to different bands. But the receive noise level may be increased and sensitivity may be decreased while transmitting, due to lack of enough isolation between the transmitter and receiver.
  • Ideally, two separate radios are needed to maintain continuous monitoring of both the Hospital Net and the city net.
    • The second VFO of either radio could be used to monitor other nets, given the same dual-VFO limitations mentioned above.
  • The radio used for the city net can occasionally be used for something else, such as getting technical support on the county Command Net.
    • Be sure to check out of the city net before leaving and check back into the city net when returning.
    • Repeated check out/in or being away from the city Net for extended periods of time puts an added burden on the net control and means that your hospital may miss important communications. Continuous monitoring is best.
  • The physical location of radios will have an impact on how flexible the station is when staffing is at a minimum. Seek to locate equipment such that one operator can handle more than one net.
• Voice station computer equipment
  • As amateur radio becomes more integrated with WebEOC, computer equipment for the voice station should be considered.
  • Recommendation: computer, printer and appropriate software
  • Also, consider connecting the computer and printer to a local radio-room LAN to enable printer sharing with the packet station and eventual connectivity with a high-speed connection to the county ARES/RACES network.
• Packet Equipment
  • AX.25 (Packet) over VHF Amateur Radio (includes equipment details and other resources)
  • Recommendation: At least one complete packet station, including: radio, TNC, TNC/radio cables, PC, printer, and recommended software
• Network Connectivity
  • Network Considerations for Data Stations

Hospital Station Equipment Diagrams (PDF)

Line of Sight

If the hospital has a line of sight to one of the county data network hub locations, then a high-speed TCP/IP connection over WiFi can be made to the county network. An additional lower speed TCP/IP connection may be possible over UHF radio, which could provide some backup if the WiFi link fails.

• TCP/IP over WiFi Part 15 Radio (includes equipment details and other resources)
  • Can be used to access all data services
• TCP/IP over UHF Amateur Radio [Optional] (includes equipment details and other resources)
  • Backup access to the E-mail Service if the WiFi connection fails

No Line of Sight

If the hospital has no line of sight to one of the county data network hub locations, then a lower speed TCP/IP connection may be possible using UHF radio.

• TCP/IP over UHF Amateur Radio (includes equipment details and other resources)
  • Can be used to access the E-mail Service