SOP103: Hardware Emergencies

  1. Summary

    This document establishes procedures for hardware emergencies on a BIAC MRI scanner.

  2. Scope

    These policies apply to all investigators, research assistants, and MRI operators who use the BIAC research scanners.

  3. Definitions

    • Subject - An individual who is participating in an experimental protocol at BIAC and has not taken the BIAC safety course.

    • Experimenter - The investigator, research assistant, or MRI operator who is responsible for the subject and conducting the experiment.

    • Magnet Room - The room within the MRI suite that contains the MRI scanner. It is accessed from within the console room through a doorway that is controlled by an electronic lock.

    • Console Room - The main room of the MRI suite that contains the computer displays and keyboards that control the MRI scanner. The console room is accessed from the main hallway through a doorway that is controlled by an electronic lock.

    • Electronic Lock - All doors in the BIAC MRI suites are controlled by electronic locks. A single electronic key card is used for entry. The electronic lock system recognizes the owner's key card, logs the time of the attempted entry, and unlocks the door if the owner has been granted access.

  4. Policies and Procedures

    In the sections below, several scenarios are depicted regarding hardware emergencies.

    The Experimenter and MRI Operator's first responsibility is the safety of the Subject. Subjects must be immediately removed from the scanner in all emergencies. If a Subject is injured or trapped in the magnet, refer to SOP104: Medical Emergencies.

    1. The Magnet Room is rapidly filling with gas and/or vapor.

      This is most likely a magnet quench in which the cryogens that maintain the superconductivity of the main field coils are being rapidly boiled off. These gases should be vented through pipes through the ceiling, but can accumulate in the room if the venting system fails. These gases are neither toxic nor explosive, but they do displace oxygen so suffocation is a real danger.

      1. If a Subject is in the scanner, remove him or her immediately. Stay low to the floor below the gas. The room will be cold and water vapor may make visibility in the room poor. A change in pressure may make it difficult to open the Magnet Room door. Close the Magnet Room door after everyone has been evacuated.

      2. If the Subject is injured, follow the procedures in SOP104: Medical Emergencies. If the Subject can be safely transported, remove him or her from the Console Room.

      3. Once in progress, a quench cannot be stopped. Do not attempt any interventions and stay out of the Magnet Room.

      4. Immediately page the GE field engineer and call any of the BIAC faculty. If the GE engineer does not answer the page, call GE Cares.

    2. You see smoke or fire.

      1. Call the hospital operator and report a fire in the MRI suite.

      2. Immediately page the GE field engineer and call any of the BIAC faculty or Thomas Boehringer.

      3. Note that the fire extinguishers in the MRI suite are not MRI compatible, and cannot be brought into the Magnet Room.

      4. Emergency response personnel cannot enter the Magnet Room unless they have been screened and all metal objects have been removed.

    3. A metal object is attracted to the magnet and a Subject is in the bore, or is otherwise injured by the projectile.

      1. Follow the procedures in SOP104: Medical Emergencies.

      2. Follow the procedures in SOP102: Adverse Events.

    4. A metal object is attracted to the magnet and nobody is injured or in the magnet bore.

      1. Do not attempt to remove the object by yourself.

      2. Immediately page the GE field engineer and call any of the BIAC faculty or Thomas Boehringer.

    5. You don't hear the normal pumping sounds in the Magnet Room.

      The pumps circulate the cryogens. If the pumps are inoperative for a long enough period, the magnet may lose superconductivity and quench.

      1. Immediately page the GE field engineer and call any of the BIAC faculty. If the GE engineer does not answer the page, call GE Cares.

    6. You are locked out of the Magnet Room or the Console Room.

      The electronic doors are controlled by an Electronic Lock and will not open unless an authorized blue card key is swiped across the card reader.

      All electronic doors in the MRI wing are released whenever a fire alarm is activated. In the case of a emergency, and when the methods described below fail, activating a fire alarm will release the doors to the Magnet and Console Rooms. However, in that circumstance, the hospital operator should be notified so that the fire emergency response team is alerted.

      1. If you are in the Console Room and cannot gain entry to the Magnet Room, you can open the electronic door by using the emergency release switch that is located above the ceiling panel above the electronic door. You can also call the Medical Center Control Room (open 24 hours/day, 7 days/week) and ask the operator to release the Electronic Lock.

      2. If you are locked outside of the Console Room, you can call the Medical Center Control Room (open 24 hours/day, 7 days/week) and ask the operator to release the Electronic Lock.

SOP