Crash carts, or emergency carts, are used in emergency medical and surgical situations to save lives. They are moveable, easy to find, and contain vital storage for life-saving medications and equipment. This means that all of this equipment and medication can be accessed quickly and easily, saving precious minutes when dealing with life-threatening emergencies.

What do crash carts contain?

Crash carts can be used to store whatever equipment or medication the setting indicates it will need in an emergency situation. Many wards will keep items such as AEDs (Automated External Defibrillators), oxygen face masks, syringes, gloves, and IV tubing in their carts, as well as a stock of drugs such as aspirin, epinephrine, and narcan, any of which are used to treat emergency situations such as heart attacks and overdoses. The precise contents of a cart will depend on each setting and may be different depending on where the cart is located. For example, a nursing home may choose to stock more aspirin, whereas a neonatal facility may need to stock smaller sizes of equipment such as infant oxygen masks.

All EVERHUTCH crash carts can be fitted with an IV pole, suction cup mount kit, defibrillator shelf and a sharps box to allow for easy storage and access to emergency supplies and to make sure that waste can be disposed of safely. They contain six drawers in a variety of sizes to make sure that all of your equipment can be stored and accessed. They are also fully customizable to meet your specific setting’s needs.

Where should crash carts be kept?

Crash carts should be kept where they can be quickly accessed. Depending on the setting, you might choose to put crash carts in or near ICU rooms, emergency rooms, and surgical units in a hospital or on every floor of a nursing home. Our crash carts are a bright red color, so they can be easily identified at a distance in an emergency. They are also easy to move thanks to their large casters (which can also be locked to avoid the cart moving while medication is being administered).

Crash carts, even though they contain a considerable amount of life-saving equipment, are very compact and can be easily stored on any ward.

How many crash carts does a setting need?

Different healthcare settings will have different requirements depending on the type of patients they treat. While some hospitals might only need one or two crash carts per ward, cardiac or stroke wards might decide to have more to deal with the potential for life threatening events.

Crash carts should be kept clean, organized, and updated. EVERHUTCH crash carts are made from durable, rolled steel that is not only easy to clean to help with preventing infections, but has a protective coating that is scratch and chemical-resistant.

Whatever your setting is, you can customize an EVERHUTCH crash cart with everything you need to make sure that staff can provide effective care in an emergency.