How to Choose Container Mobile Clinics?

Mobile medical clinic shipping containers are a novel approach to addressing healthcare disparities. Essentially, a medical company repurposes a used/new shipping container into a medical facility. These clinics can be outfitted with many different medical devices and services. Shipping containers can offer medical services in a compact and easily transportable package. However, are they right for you? Read more to find out!\

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Features of Mobile Medical Clinic Shipping Containers

Layout and Design:

Most shipping containers have a standard layout and sizing. You can spring for smaller shipping containers if you know you won’t need the space.

Medical Equipment and Technology Integration:

Mobile medical clinics can be outfitted with technology and electrical hookups to power devices.

Safety and Security Measures

Mobile medical clinics can be outfitted with robust security measures, which is very important when transporting expensive medical equipment.

Insulation

Shipping containers can be outfitted with insulation for warmer and colder climates.

HVAC Systems for Climate Control

Medical equipment must be kept in a proper climate for patient comfort and to maintain its integrity. Shipping containers can be outfitted with HVAC systems to ensure equipment and personnel are kept cool/warm.

Plumbing

Shipping container clinics can be equipped with modern sanitation facilities, including restrooms and handwashing stations, to ensure the cleanliness and well-being of patients and healthcare providers.

The Versatility of Mobile Medical Shipping Containers in Healthcare

Clinics of this type are created by converting shipping containers into fully functional medical facilities. For most shipping container mobile clinics this requires customizations such as plumbing, electricity, insulation, and medical equipment integration.

Shipping containers are typically made of sturdy materials like steel, making them durable and resilient. Most shipping containers adhere to standard sizes and shapes, making them ideal for widespread adoption and usage.

Customization Options:

Shipping containers may be adapted to meet a variety of healthcare requirements. Medical equipment, consultation rooms, waiting places, and even bathrooms can be included in the interior design. Proper insulation for climate management, soundproofing for privacy, and secure entrance systems for patient safety are examples of customized features. Modification for shipping containers is quite common and is done regularly.

Portability and Scalability:

One of the most notable advantages of employing shipping containers is their mobility. They may be moved quickly to remote or disaster-stricken locations using trucks, ships, or even helicopters (most are moved with a truck and trailer). Furthermore, they may be swiftly set up and expanded relatively quickly. If you feel the need to expand, you can add more storage containers.

Cost-Effectiveness:

Shipping container clinics are generally less expensive than standard brick-and-mortar healthcare facilities. They can take less time, labor, and resources to establish. These cost savings are especially crucial for healthcare organizations and nonprofits with limited funds.

Types of Shipping Container Mobile Medical Clinics

Mobile medical clinic shipping containers have the added benefit of being customizable and can fit many different purposes. However, we do want to stress that most shipping containers probably need to serve only one or two purposes over their lifetime. Shipping containers will still need work to fit different utilities.

General Healthcare Clinics:

Clinics like these offer primary care, basic diagnostics, vaccinations, and preventive care.

Emergency Response Clinics:

These disaster-ready clinics provide emergency medical supplies, triage services, and first aid. They can be as simple as first aid supplies to in-depth as operating tables.

Specialized Clinics:

A shipping container clinic can be customized to meet the needs of specific groups of people, such as dental offices, eye clinics, mental health counseling centers, and women’s health centers.

Mobile Vaccination Clinics:

These types of containers contain all the suppliers and necessary equipment to distribute vaccinations in remote locations.

Laboratory and Testing Clinics:

Hospitals can provide additional space for diagnostic testing and lab work.

Veterinary Clinics:

Shipping containers can provide animal healthcare, especially in rural regions and especially after disasters.

Mobile Blood Donation Clinics:

Mobile medical clinic shipping containers make blood collection and donation services easy to deploy, especially after a disaster. These facilities make it easy to deploy these services or set up permanent facilities.

Challenges and Considerations for Mobile Medical Clinic Shipping Containers

There are many advantages to using a shipping container for a mobile clinic. However, there are some considerations you should know before choosing a shipping container.

Regulatory and compliance issues

Shipping container clinics must fulfill all licensing and safety criteria in order to provide quality service. There are also various local codes for installing a shipping container as well as transportation. Shipping containers cannot reach over certain weight limits in travel.

Maintenance and upkeep

Regular maintenance is essential to guarantee the clinics’ functioning and safety. This covers medical equipment, infrastructure, and structural integrity checks on the shipping containers. Scheduled maintenance and a solid maintenance plan are required to keep clinics running and safe for patients and healthcare staff.

Addressing specific healthcare needs

While shipping container clinics are adaptable, addressing unique healthcare requirements may necessitate specialized equipment, knowledge, or more space. Each clinic must be carefully planned and customized by healthcare organizations to ensure that it fulfills the particular healthcare needs of the community it serves.

Budget constraints

While shipping container clinics are less expensive than regular institutions, there are still costs to consider. Budgets must be made for initial site preparation, continuing operational expenses, maintenance, and prospective expansions. Effective financial planning and resource management are required to ensure the long-term viability of these clinics.

Need a Shipping Container?

Looking for a shipping container to turn into a mobile medical clinic? 360Connect can help you find the right shipping container company. We help companies find qualified suppliers every day! Just fill out our 1–2-minute form and we’ll contact you to verify your information and needs. From there, you can sit back and relax and up to 5 qualified suppliers will reach out to you with quotes. The best part? This is 100% free!

EXPANDABLE SIDE SLIDE-OUTS

Odulair expandable sides are easy to operate and provide up to 1,000 square feet of additional interior space to optimize efficiency and patient throughput. Our expandable design provides both convenience and reliability while allowing for rapid set-up and tear-down when moving your Mobile Clinic from location to location. Knowing time is valuable, Odulair utilizes a rapid automatic electric slide-out drive system that companies can rely on. There is also a manual backup built in—just in case of power loss.

AWNINGS

Awnings can run the entire length of the trailer and on both sides if desired to give additional protection from the elements or to expand the experiential space beyond the actual trailer. External awnings provide an excellent outdoor seating area for patient waiting or to provide patient education. How far the awning extends from the trailer depends on the design and the attaching point to the trailer. The two main types of awnings are freestanding, which are limited to 15 feet, and a down pole design that can go as far as 32 feet.  Awnings can also be simply used over the entrance of a door as well.

PATIENT AND WHEELCHAIR LIFTS

There are two types of lifts—lift gates and cargo lifts. Both mount on the rear of the trailer and do as they say—lift cargo or products above the ground. Odulair rear lift gates can be used to create a dramatic double door entrance to the Mobile Hospital.  The Odulair lift gate is unique in the industry and creates quite a buzz among your patients and healthcare provider competitors.

AWNINGS AND CANOPIES

Awnings and canopies are hinged at the top, so when the side of the trailer opens, it forms a roof. The awning can provide an outdoor patient waiting room or patient education area. In suitable climates, this allows you to eliminate these areas from the interior of your Mobile Clinic providing more space for exam rooms and other patient care areas.

GENERATOR AND SHORE POWER CABLE

If you need more than 12 volt electrical power for your trailer, which is almost always the case, you'll need a generator, a shore power cable or both.

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The shore power cable is an umbilical cord from your trailer to a stationary electric box where you can plug in your trailer's electrical system to provide power to it, like the electric power in your house. Shore power cord come in different capacities described in ampere (commonly called amps) and voltage ratings.

However, often you may not want to or cannot plug in to a stationary power source and that's where a generator (or often called a gen set) comes into play. In addition to the generator itself, the gen set includes the engine (gas or diesel), control box and transfer switch.

HYBRID SOLAR, STORED ENERGY, GENERATOR ALTERNATIVE POWER

Odulair is an innovator in offering alternative power solutions for our Medical Vehicles. We were the first to offer a solar powered mobile clinic in . Now we're excited about a new alternative that we have just developed. It is a hybrid alternative power solutions that utilizes solar panels, high efficiency battery packs, and a generator to power your mobile medical unit. The solar PV panels collect the suns energy, which is stored in the high efficiency battery pack. The electrical outlets inside of the mobile clinic run off the battery pack. However, because medical equipment generally requires a significant amount of energy, solar power is not often enough. So, there is an integrated generator. When the battery packs are reduced to a set minimum capacity, the generator automatically turns on to top off the energy stored in the battery packs. Once the battery packs are full, the generator automatically turns off. Its all automatic and will not only provide reliable power even where electricity is not available, but it will also significantly reduce your operational costs.

HIGH HEAT / UV REFLECTIVE COATING

If your Mobile Clinic is going to be used in an area with very high temperatures or it will be in the full sun all day without finding the sun's warmth beneficial, you might want to consider adding our high heat / UV reflective coating to the roof and side walls. This patented ceramic coating uses nanotechnology to reflect 99% of the ultraviolet radiation from the sun. In hot climates, this reduction of UV rays allows your air conditioners to be more efficient decreasing the amount of diesel fuel required to keep your Mobile Clinic cool. The same coating can be used in extremely cold temperatures to reduce condensation.

EXTREME COLD CONDENSATION REDUCTION COATING

If your Mobile Clinic is going to be used in an area with very cold temperatures or it will be in predominately damp areas, you might want to consider adding our extreme cold condensation reduction coating to the roof and side walls. This patented ceramic coating uses nanotechnology to retain consistent temperatures between the outer and inner walls of the mobile clinic. The coating is used on both the exterior and interior to significantly reduce condensation keeping your environment free from potential mold and mildew associated with most vehicles operating in these types of conditions.

HVAC

HVAC is an acronym for heating, ventilating and air conditioning. Of course, heating and air conditioning are important to keep your medical team and patients comfortable. You can choose between single area units and centrally ducted. Single area units have one output vent and one return vent in an area. You'll need separate units for separate rooms, each with their own thermostat. Centrally ducted will have one or two master units, each with its own thermostat, with duct work that distributes the air throughout the whole Mobile Hospital, similar to central air conditioning in a home.

Most air conditioning units are also available with some heating capacity that can keep you comfortable when ambient temperature is above about 40 degrees F. Below that you'll need a propane fired furnace.

EXTERIOR WALLS

Exterior wall covering is most commonly aluminum riveted to vertical posts that run from the floor to the roof. Side sheets can be attached to vertical posts in two ways, exposed rivets or smooth side, where rivets are concealed.

EXTERIOR LIGHTS

Either 12 volt, 120 volt, or 240 volt lights can be used to illuminate the perimeter of the trailer. 120 volt lights can provide more light, but you'll need to have the generator running or have your shore cord hooked up first. 12 volt lights can run off the battery in the trailer.

EXTERIOR OUTLETS

Exterior outlets can be installed to provide 120 volt or 230 volt access from outside. Common mounting areas are underneath the trailer along one side, along the bottom rail of the exterior side wall and along the top rail near where the side wall and roof meet.

MARQUEES

A marquee is a roof mounted flat panel that makes the trailer appear to be taller than it is, similar to a false front on a store building. The main uses for marquees are for signage to provide additional visibility to attract attention. They are also used to provide a higher attaching point for awnings, if needed.

STORAGE BAYS

Where does everything go when you are in transit? There will be some equipment, like awning poles and canvas, freestanding items and furniture, stairs, rails and that will have to be stored for transit. They can go under the floor, in belly boxes, between the roof and ceiling or tied down to the center section of the main floor.

INTERIOR FLOOR COVERING

There is a variety of floor coverings available, including linoleum, carpet, wood, etc. Just about anything that's available for a building can be installed in your trailer.  For medical applications, you will want a floor covering that can be cleaned up easily to reduce contact with germs and because your mobile clinic will be experiencing heavy traffic. A raised dot rubber tile, commonly used in hospitals, can also be used. Within patient care areas, Odulair only uses medical-grade vinyl flooring in continuous sheets to avoid unnecessary contamination.

INTERIOR WALL COVERING

Once the electrical and plumbing are installed, interior walls are typically insulated and then finished with Trespa Virtuon, a naturally anti-bacterial wall covering that is the European standard for use in operating rooms and hospital environments. Trespa comes in a variety of colors and textures. All are naturally anti-bacterial and suitable for mobile clinic applications.

CEILING COVERING

Like walls, ceilings are insulated then covered. Some common finish materials for ceilings are cleanroom-grade acoustic tile, solid surface materials, and Trespa Virtuon.

DOORS AND WINDOWS

Some manufacturers use mass produced doors, primarily designed for the RV industry. Others make their own. Odulair offers either. Typically, mass-produced doors are used on smaller truck-based mobile clinics, bumper pull and gooseneck trailers and custom made ones are used on semi trailers. Custom made doors are a two inch thick, double wall construction with double edges for seals. The double-seal design provides a significantly better seal to keep road dirt, dust and rain out.

Windows can be installed in a wide variety of sizes and features. They can open with a slide or hinged design or be fixed. Windows can also be tinted or clear and a variety of coverings are available.

INTERIOR ELECTRICAL

Because Odulair sells mobile medical units for use around the world, we custom configure our mobile clinics to your power and power plug requirements. These can be placed where you want and wherever they will fit as long as your request is for safe placement that meets your local building code regulations. You will need to work with our design team to determine number and placement. How about , cable TV and computer outlets? These are all available too but also need to be specified. A wide variety of lighting is also available, but we prefer green energy, low voltage LED lighting. Flush mount means that the front of the light fixture is recessed so it is flush with the ceiling surface. Surface mount means that the rear of fixture is mounted to the ceiling surface so the fixture protrudes from the ceiling surface.

APPLIANCES

Your Mobile Clinic can be equipped with just about any appliance, including:

• Microwave oven
• Refrigerator/freezer
• Coffee maker
• Trash compactor
• Dishwasher
• Washer/dryer
• Range and ventilating hood

MEDICAL EQUIPMENT

We work with all major medical equipment manufacturers to incorporate high quality medical devices into each of our mobile clinics. If you have a preferred make or model, just let us know and we will incorporate your choice into your mobile medical unit.

TELEMEDICINE PACKAGES

Because many of our mobile clinics are used for delivering healthcare in very remote areas, we understand telemedicine to a far greater extent than most. Actually, its also because our founder spent years as a member of of the DICOM committee as well. But, the bottom line is that at Odulair, we understand telemedicine. We offer multiple telemedicine packages to meet your specific needs. Whether you would like a cellular service-based package or a complete satellite package if there is no cellular service in your location, Odulair has it all.

ROBOTIC  PACKAGE

Odulair offers the only telehealth robotic package available inside a mobile clinic. Our founder has extensive experience in robotic surgery working directly with Computer Motion (now Intuitive Surgical) in the development and marketing of surgical robots. Who better to design our Robotic Package?

ROBOTIC SURGERY PACKAGE

Odulair offers the only robotic surgery package available inside a mobile surgery unit. Our founder has extensive experience in robotic surgery working directly with Computer Motion (now Intuitive Surgical) in the development and marketing of surgical robots. Who better to design our Robotic Surgery Package?

SYNESTHESIATM PATIENT RELAXATION SYSTEM

The Odulair proprietary Synesthesia(TM) Patient Relaxation System synchronizes music, ambient color-changing LED lights, and relaxing video imagery to reduce patient anxiety, induce relaxation, and create a soothing environment for performing long and tedious medical procedures. The Synesthesia System was designed by a team of four PhD scientists specializing in health, music, and electronics. Odulair is the only medical vehicle manufacturer to offer such a unique patient immersion experience.

RESTROOM, TOILETS AND SINKS

Odulair Mobile Clinics can be completely self-contained, and therefore, a restroom might be a good option, which will require plumbing for a water toilet and no plumbing for an incinerator toilet.

ELECTRONICS

The availability of electronic devices is almost endless. Some common items are:

• TVs / monitors
• Stereo FM/tape/CD players with built in speakers
• Security systems
• systems
• Cell antennas
• Weather stations
• Computer networks
• Satellite dish for remote communications, TV and Internet

CABINETS AND FURNITURE

Cabinetry includes counter tops, overhead cabinets and doors, cabinets under counter tops or desktops, desks, tables, closets, drawers and doors. They are custom fitted to meet the needs of your trailer design. When relocatable cabinets are required, Odulair uses the durable Herman Miller Co/Struc Cabinetry System just like most hospitals around the world.

KIOSKS AND OTHER DESIGN ELEMENTS

Display elements can be just about anything you can imagine. Common display elements are:

• Shelves/cases/supports to hold items to be displayed, signs, patient literature, procedure pamphlets, display lights
• Supports for graphics elements, such as signs
• Cabinets/supports for interactive video

SATELLITE AND CONNECTIVITY PACKAGES

Many Odulair Mobile Hospitals travel great distances from civilization into remote areas without cellular service. Therefore, we offer a wide range of satellite and connectivity packages to meet every need. Ask our sales team about your many options to stay connected to your headquarters facility or to expert doctors around the world.

OTHER OPTIONS

If the above list of customizations wasn't enough, here are some other elements, space uses and items to consider:

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