Hospital Emergency Codes - Color Code Standardization

Color Code Standardization

  • Australia:
    • Australian hospitals and other buildings are covered by Australian Standard 4083 (1997) and many are in the process of changing to those standards.
  • Canada:
    • The various emergency preparedness services of the health regions in Alberta have also begun to discuss standardization of their color code systems.
  • United States of America:
    • In 2000, the Hospital Association of Southern California (HASC) determined that a uniform code system is needed after "three persons were killed in a shooting incident at an area medical center after the wrong emergency code was called." While codes for fire (red) and medical emergency (blue) were similar in 90% of California hospitals queried, 47 different codes were used for infant abduction and 61 for combative person. In light of this, HASC published a handbook titled "Healthcare Facility Emergency Codes: A Guide for Code Standardization" listing various codes and has strongly urged hospitals to voluntarily implement the revised codes.
    • In 2003, Maryland mandated that all acute hospitals in the state have uniform codes.

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