§ 70849. Gases for Medical Use.

(a) Provision shall be made for safe handling and storage of medical gas cylinders.

(b) Transfer of gas by hospital personnel from one cylinder to another is prohibited except when approved by the Department.

(c) Gases for medical use include carbon dioxide, cyclopropane, ethylene, helium, nitrous oxide, oxygen, helium-oxygen mixtures and carbon dioxide-oxygen mixtures.

(d) All anesthesia machines and related equipment shall be so constructed that connections for different gases are not interchangeable.

This requirement shall be accomplished by installing permanent fittings as indicated below:

(1) Yoke connections of anesthesia machines and flush outlet valves for small compressed gas cylinders (Style E and smaller) shall conform with the pin index safety system contained in pamphlet B57.1 Compressed Gas Cylinder Valve Outlet and Inlet Connections, 1965 Edition, by the American National Standards Institute, Inc., 1430 Broadway, New York, NY 10018.

(2) Valve outlet connections for large cylinders (Style F and larger) for oxygen and nitrous oxide shall conform with the standards contained in pamphlet B57.1, Compressed Gas Cylinder Valve Outlet and Inlet Connections, 1965 Edition, by the American National Standards Institute, Inc., 1430 Broadway, New York, NY 10018. Standard connection No. 540 shall be used with oxygen cylinders and standard connection No. 1320 shall be used with nitrous oxide cylinders. Cylinders for medical gases, other than oxygen and nitrous oxide, used with anesthesia machines shall be limited to Style E and smaller.

(3) Removable exposed threaded connections, where employed in medical gas piping systems and equipment used in conjunction with resuscitators and oxygen therapy apparatus, shall be provided with noninterchangeable connections which conform with pamphlet V-5, Diameter-Index Safety System, May 1970 printing, by the Compressed Gas Association, Inc., 500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10036.

(4) Station outlets from piped oxygen and nitrous oxide systems shall conform with the standards contained in bulletin NFPA No. 56 degrees F, Nonflammable Medical Gas Systems, 1973, by the National Fire Protection Association, 470 Atlantic Avenue, Boston, MA 02210.

(5) Removable connection hoses from station outlets or cylinders to yokes of anesthesia machines shall be fitted with permanently connected fittings to match the standards listed above in paragraphs (1), (2), (3) and (4).

(e) The piped oxygen or nitrous oxide system(s) shall be tested in accordance with the National Fire Protection Association Bulletin NFPA No. 56F, referred to above, and a written report shall be maintained in each of the following instances:

(1) Upon completion of initial installation.

(2) Whenever changes are made to a system.

(3) Whenever the integrity of a system has been breached.

(4) At least annually.

(f) Oxygen Equipment.

(1) Vaporizer bottles shall be sterilized after each use.

(2) Only sterile fluids shall be used in vaporizer bottles.

(3) Vaporizer bottles shall be changed at least every 24 hours.