Backup Power for Nursing Homes & Senior Care Facilities

Nursing homes and senior care facilities have unique backup-power requirements because electrical outages can affect resident care, building systems, communications, temperature control, safety equipment and other essential facility operations.

The appropriate backup-power system depends on the type of facility, the services it provides, the loads that need to remain supported and the federal, state and local requirements that apply to the location.

CI Group supplies commercial and industrial generators, UPS systems and automatic transfer switches for healthcare, commercial and other critical-power applications.

Emergency Power Planning Starts With the Facility’s Requirements

Backup-power planning should begin by identifying which loads need to remain available during a utility outage.

For a nursing home or long-term-care facility, these can include:

• Emergency and life-safety systems
• Resident-care equipment
• Emergency lighting
• Fire detection, alarm and suppression systems
• Heating or cooling needed to maintain safe temperatures
• Refrigeration or storage required for medications and provisions
• Communications systems
• Security and access-control systems
• Elevators or mobility-related systems where required
• Kitchen and food-storage equipment
• IT and facility-management systems
• Pumps, sewage or waste-handling systems where applicable

The actual emergency loads should be determined by the facility’s emergency plan, electrical design and applicable regulatory requirements rather than by assuming every building requires the same backup-power configuration.

CMS Emergency Preparedness Requirements for Long-Term-Care Facilities

Medicare- and Medicaid-participating long-term-care facilities are subject to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Emergency Preparedness Rule.

CMS requires these facilities to develop an emergency-preparedness program based on an all-hazards risk assessment. The program addresses areas including emergency planning, policies and procedures, communications, and training and testing.

Power failure is specifically among the conditions facilities are expected to consider in emergency planning.

Review CMS emergency preparedness requirements.

CMS guidance also requires long-term-care facilities to plan for alternate sources of energy needed to maintain appropriate temperatures for resident health and safety, safe and sanitary storage of provisions, emergency lighting, fire-protection systems and sewage or waste disposal.

The exact solution depends on the facility’s risk assessment and applicable requirements. CMS does not prescribe diesel generation as the only acceptable backup-power approach for every long-term-care facility.

Some Nursing Homes Have Specific Generator Requirements

Generator requirements can vary based on the services provided within the facility.

CMS specifically notes that long-term-care facilities using life-support systems are required to have emergency electrical power supplied by an emergency generator under applicable federal requirements.

For other long-term-care facilities, the emergency and standby power system should be developed from the facility’s emergency plan, risk assessment and applicable Life Safety Code, electrical and state requirements.

Because requirements vary by facility and jurisdiction, the project should be coordinated with the facility’s engineer, compliance team and authority having jurisdiction.

Backup Generators for Nursing Homes and Senior Care Facilities

A standby generator can provide longer-duration backup power when utility service is unavailable.

Generator selection should be based on the loads the facility needs to support, not simply on the building’s total electrical service size.

Important considerations include:

• Required kW and kVA capacity
• Critical and emergency loads
• Motor-starting requirements
• Voltage, phase and frequency
• Generator application rating
• Fuel type
• Required operating duration
• Fuel availability or storage
• Automatic transfer equipment
• Location and physical installation
• Emissions and permitting
• Inspection, testing and maintenance requirements

CI Group offers commercial and industrial generator equipment across a wide range of capacities for facilities evaluating new, surplus and pre-owned equipment.

Diesel or Natural Gas Generator?

Nursing homes are not limited to one generator fuel type simply because they are healthcare facilities.

Diesel and natural gas generator systems are both used in commercial and critical-power applications. The appropriate configuration depends on the facility’s electrical requirements, fuel infrastructure, emergency plan, runtime requirements, site conditions and applicable regulations.

Items to evaluate include:

• On-site fuel-storage capability
• Natural gas service availability
• Expected generator runtime
• Refueling arrangements
• Facility space
• Generator capacity
• Installation requirements
• Emissions and permitting
• Maintenance requirements

For a broader comparison, see Natural Gas vs. Diesel Generators.

UPS Systems Can Protect Selected Critical Loads

A generator does not serve the same function as an uninterruptible power supply.

A properly configured UPS can provide immediate stored-energy support to equipment connected to the UPS when normal power is interrupted. This can bridge the transition while the generator starts and the emergency-power system transfers to the alternate source.

Depending on the facility, UPS-protected loads may include:

• IT and network equipment
• Communications systems
• Selected monitoring systems
• Building-control equipment
• Other electronic loads requiring uninterrupted transition

A UPS is not automatically required for every load in a nursing home. The protected equipment and required runtime should be determined from the facility’s electrical and operational requirements.

CI Group supplies UPS systems across a broad range of capacities and manufacturers.

Automatic Transfer Switches Connect Normal and Emergency Power

The automatic transfer switch is an important part of many standby-generator systems.

The ATS monitors the normal electrical source and, based on its configuration, coordinates the transition of designated loads to the alternate power source when the generator is available.

Transfer equipment should be appropriately rated for the electrical system and the loads it is expected to transfer.

CI Group supplies automatic transfer switch equipment and also provides ATS service and maintenance for critical-power applications.

Temperature Control Should Be Part of Emergency Power Planning

Maintaining safe environmental conditions is an important part of emergency planning for long-term-care facilities.

CMS specifically requires covered facilities to address alternate sources of energy necessary to maintain temperatures that protect resident health and safety and support safe storage of provisions.

That does not necessarily mean every HVAC component in the building must operate exactly as it does under normal utility power.

The facility’s emergency plan should identify which heating, cooling, ventilation and supporting electrical loads are required to maintain the necessary conditions during an emergency.

If the emergency plan requires a generator to support those loads, the generator and electrical distribution system need enough capacity for the equipment that will be operated.

Include Fuel Supply in Generator Runtime Planning

A generator’s electrical capacity and its available runtime are separate considerations.

For diesel-generator installations, the facility should evaluate:

• Usable fuel-storage capacity
• Expected generator load
• Estimated consumption
• Fuel condition and maintenance
• Refueling arrangements
• Access for fuel delivery during an emergency

CMS guidance requires long-term-care facilities that maintain an onsite fuel source for emergency generators to plan for how emergency power will remain operational during the emergency unless the facility evacuates.

CI Group’s Diesel Generator Fuel Consumption Chart can provide general planning estimates across different generator capacities and load levels.

Testing and Maintenance Are Part of Emergency Preparedness

Installing generator, UPS and transfer equipment is only one part of a facility’s backup-power strategy.

Equipment should also have an inspection, testing and maintenance program based on the applicable manufacturer guidance, facility requirements and regulatory standards.

CMS requires covered long-term-care facilities with emergency generators to meet applicable generator location, inspection, testing and fuel requirements.

UPS systems and batteries also require ongoing maintenance. CI Group provides UPS preventative maintenance and UPS battery replacement for critical-power environments.

Plan for Equipment Replacement and Facility Growth

Backup-power requirements can change as a nursing home renovates, expands or adds new equipment.

A facility review should consider whether existing generators, UPS systems and transfer equipment still provide the capacity required for:

• Current emergency loads
• Additional resident rooms
• New medical or care equipment
• Expanded HVAC requirements
• IT and communications growth
• Building renovations
• Changes to the facility’s emergency plan

When existing generator equipment is being replaced, facilities can also compare new, surplus and pre-owned options. See Used vs. New Generators: Cost & Buying Guide.

Backup Power Planning Checklist for Nursing Homes

When evaluating a nursing home or senior-care backup-power system, consider:

• What federal, state and local requirements apply to the facility?
• What does the facility’s emergency risk assessment require?
• Which loads must remain supported?
• Does the facility use life-support equipment?
• What generator capacity is required?
• What voltage, phase and frequency are required?
• Which loads require immediate UPS support?
• How much UPS battery runtime is appropriate?
• Does the ATS support the required electrical load?
• Which heating or cooling loads need emergency power?
• How much generator runtime is required?
• What fuel-storage or supply plan is needed?
• What inspection and testing schedule applies?
• Does the current system allow for planned facility growth?

Build the Backup Power System Around the Facility

A nursing home’s backup-power strategy should be based on its residents, services, critical loads, emergency plan and applicable regulatory requirements.

Generators, UPS systems and automatic transfer switches each perform different functions, and the complete system should be evaluated as one coordinated power path.

CI Group helps facilities source critical-power equipment across a wide range of capacities, including commercial generators, UPS systems and automatic transfer switches.