Oxygen Smart

1. Make sure the oxygen flow rate is set as prescribed by your doctor.  (Neither above nor below).
2. Keep an emergency oxygen supply somewhere handy. Make sure it is filled.
3. Make sure the tubing has no kinks and the flow is working smoothly.
4. Another frequent check area is the humidifier bottle.
5. Oxygen flow tends to produce dryness to the inside of your nose.  To reduce this you can apply a water soluble lubricant.
6. Have your technician and supplier’s telephone numbers easy to find (on the fridge perhaps).

Each day more and more people are being prescribed with oxygen therapy due to respiratory and lung problems. We, the baby boomer generation, are more lightly to need oxygen therapy in the shorter term.  When younger, in the sixties and seventies, there was much less awareness of the potential risks involved with smoking and a lot of us did smoking strange stuff, including tobacco. If you have smoked you should see your doctor and have a check up.

The good news is that oxygen supply equipment, be it oxygen tanks or oxygen concentrators, have developed in the last few years and are now much more user friendly.

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Portable Oxygen Concentrators for Air Travel have been Approved by the FAA

The FAA has approved some portable oxygen concentrators for passengers and this is very good news, and I speak from experience.

Oxygen concentrators extract oxygen from the surrounding air and portable ones are both battery operated and can be plugged in.  So for your travel needs, and remember times can be longer than projected, make sure you have sufficient battery power available.  You should take into account:

1. Getting to the airport
2. Arrive at least two hours before the flight
3. Before the flight -baggage check and security process; delays prior to boarding.
4. During the flight -Is it a direct flight or with stops? Delays once you have boarded or prior to landing.
5. Post flight – Baggage recovery, in airport transit time.
6. Reaching your destination

Just recently we suffered delays when the security people checked my Dad’s POC. Apparently they hadn’t seen one before.  Unfortunately my Dad got nervous, which in turn provoked the security people and we all began to get stressed out.  We got through eventually and made the flight but the tension produced shortage of breath.  So keep calm at all times.

Advise the airline when you make your reservations and again at least two days before your flight that you will be traveling with oxygen. Just in case, take your prescription with you.

The Portable Oxygen Generators (POC’s) that have been approved are:

Inogen One, AirSep Lifestyle, AirSep Freestyle, SeQual Eclipse and Respironics EverGo.

Airlines do not allow you to carry on any other types of oxygen supply units and you cannot take filled oxygen tanks (liquid or compressed) as baggage. Some do allow you to take empty tanks but you must check with them before.

It all sounds complicated, but with a bit of planning everything should go smoothly and after all it is really good news.

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The new rules that came into effect on January 1st relating to oxygen supply rental coverage by Medicare, basically indicate:

• Rental coverage of oxygen concentrators by Medicare is now set to three years (36 monthly payments- less deductible) with suppliers retaining ownership of the equipment.
• Suppliers must continue to provide Medicare beneficiaries with supplies and properly functioning equipment for an additional two years at no cost.
• Once the five year period comes to an end the equipment can be replaced and a new three year rental period can begin.

There are additional points that cover patient’s needs as when they relocate and others. Now all this is good news for Medicare beneficiaries.

However there is always another side to the coin. Who picks up the tab for those 24 months where suppliers have to maintain the oxygen concentrators working properly and provide for replacements?

In the long run not many businesses can afford to give away their services and maintain products for free.

I am sure this not the end of the story – for the moment we will have to wait for more developments.

As of January 1st a new law came into effect that is limiting rental coverage of oxygen concentrators, by Medicare. Medicare cover is now set to three years (36 monthly payments- less deductible) but suppliers retain ownership of the equipment instead of beneficiaries (users).

Suppliers however must continue to provide Medicare beneficiaries with supplies and properly functioning oxygen concentrators for an additional two years at no cost. Once the five year period comes to an end the equipment can be replaced and a new three year rental period can begin.

There are 3 important points to remember:

1. Patients will continue to receive oxygen as long as they need it.
2. The oxygen equipment supplier will receive 36 monthly rental payments and they must continue to provide properly functioning equipment and supplies after these 36 months at no cost. After the 5 years are up (60 months) the supplier may replace the equipment but a new 36 monthly rental period will begin.
3. If the supplier refuses to follow these rules, contact: 1-800-Medicare (1-800-633-4227)

This will be short and sweet.

I realized a couple of days ago that my father hadn’t complained of having a headache for a really long time.

I mentioned that to him and he suddenly realized it is true and he hasn´t had one since he started his oxygen therapy. That is one unexpected bonus as he had a really bad time before and with considerable regularity.

I am tempted to try it out the next whopper

As I mentioned in The First Oxygen Safety Rule the most obvious one is keeping away from flames.

The ALA (American Lung Association) provide a few more simple tips for oxygen safety, and they are:

• Avoid open flames in the presence of oxygen use – e.g. matches, cigarette lighters, candles, and burning tobacco.
• Caution must also be used around other sources of heat, such as electric or gas heaters and/or stoves.
• People using oxygen should avoid using lotions or creams containing petroleum. The combustion of flammable products containing petroleum can also be supported by the presence of oxygen.
• It is important to store cylinders safely – cylinders should be upright and secure, in an approved cart or device for storage.
• Remember when not in use, oxygen supply valves should be turned off.
• Always follow the instructions of your oxygen supply company regarding safe usage.

Following these simple safety tips will allow patients for whom oxygen is a necessity to maintain their health without incident.

Patients requiring an external oxygen supply must take some basic safety precautions.

And the first safety rule for oxygen users, is very simple, quite obvious and simple to apply.

• No flames nearby.

Oxygen in itself is not flammable, but it does feed fire. The air around us contains 21% oxygen, and it is this oxygen that feeds the fire (in fact oxygen is an accelerator).

If you extract the oxygen from the air, you can’t light a match. Now think what happens when a patient is receiving 95% oxygen. This concentration will mean that a nearby flame will be getting nearly four times the oxygen it would normally receive. And that is not a good idea.

And the first safety measure is to avoid any type of flame. Sometimes we are absent minded and take things for granted but their are a few simple things you can do.

• No smoking near you, preferably in the same room. From the smoke point of view taking extra oxygen and inhaling (passively or actively) won’t do you lungs any good, but the flame side of the equation is a definite no-no.
• Exposed flames, in the kitchen, heaters and so on.

Anyone receiving extra oxygen has a higher concentration of this gas around him, so be careful.