Powering Health
Electrification Options for Developing Country Health Facilities
Useful Links
Contents:
These are links to external publications and Web sites that have information on issues related to providing reliable electricity and energy services at health facilities. USAID and Powering Health make no warrantee or guarantee regarding these external resources, and the organizations hosting these resources are solely responsible for their content.
Batteries
Lead-Acid Battery Guide for Stand-Alone Photovoltaic Systems, International Energy Agency, Dec 1999 (PDF 396K).
This guide is a compilation of mostly well known information on lead acid batteries for professional users. Still this information is seldom available for the user/installer of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems not connected to the power grid. The battery is the weakest part of a stand-alone PV system today. Even by using only part of the information given in this guide the battery lifetime can be extended and the lifecycle cost can be reduced substantially in a PV system.
Batteries and Charge Control in Stand-Alone Photovoltaic Systems: Fundamentals and Application, Sandia National Laboratories, Jan 1997 (PDF 263K).
This report presents an overview of battery technology and charge control strategies commonly used in stand-alone photovoltaic (PV) systems. This work is a compilation of information from several sources, including PV system design manuals, research reports, data from component manufacturers, and lessons learned from hardware evaluations.
Blood Safety
The Blood Cold Chain: Guide to the Selection and Procurement of Equipment and Accessories, World Health Organization, Nov 2002 (PDF 792K)
This is the first WHO publication dedicated to assisting managers of blood programmes to select and procure equipment and devices for the blood cold chain. This publication also aims to provide basic information on the blood cold chain and guidelines on its management.
Product Information Sheets, World Health Organization, Jun 2000 (PDF 1,350K)
This publication provides general information on the choice of equipment, together with specific technical and purchasing data for individual selected items. Please take note of these specific sections:
- A1 & A2 – Equipment for Acute Respiratory Infections
- B4 – Cold Boxes and Carriers for Blood Transport
- EC – Equipment for Emergency Campaigns
- P7 & P8 – Syringes, Needles and Accessories for Primary Health Care
Cold Chain
The Blood Cold Chain: Guide to the Selection and Procurement of Equipment and Accessories, World Health Organization, Nov 2002 (PDF 792K)
This is the first WHO publication dedicated to assisting managers of blood programmes to select and procure equipment and devices for the blood cold chain. This publication also aims to provide basic information on the blood cold chain and guidelines on its management.
Product Information Sheets, World Health Organization, Jun 2000 (PDF 1,350K)
This publication provides general information on the choice of equipment, together with specific technical and purchasing data for individual selected items. Please take note of these specific sections:
- A1 & A2 – Equipment for Acute Respiratory Infections
- B4 – Cold Boxes and Carriers for Blood Transport
- EC – Equipment for Emergency Campaigns
- P7 & P8 – Syringes, Needles and Accessories for Primary Health Care
SolarChill Vaccine Refrigerator, CREATE: Center for Renewable Energy, Appropriate Technology and Environment.
The SolarChill is a small vaccine refrigerator that operates directly from solar photovoltaic panels without batteries or a charge controller. When the sun is shining, DC power generated by the solar panels operates the variable voltage DC compressor which freezes ice-packs used in an ice bank.
Hybrid Systems
Economics and Performance of PV Hybrid Power Systems: Three Case Studies, Sandia National Laboratories, Jul 1998 (PDF 54K).
The Photovoltaic Systems Assistance Center (PVSAC) of Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) has been supporting the development and implementation of off-grid PV hybrid power systems for many years. This paper presents a summary of the performance and economical analyses conducted on three PV hybrid systems.
Information and Communications Technology
Guide to Energy Options for Small-Scale Rural ICT Projects, (PDF 1,764K)
This guide addresses the challenge of meeting the small-scale energy needs of ICT installations in rural and remote areas where there is insufficient access to high-quality, reliable electricity to meet the needs of the ICT installation.
Improving Health, Connecting People: The Role of ICTs in the Health Sector of Developing Countries, (PDF 664K)
This framework paper describes the major challenges faced in using ICTs effectively in the health sector of developing countries. It draws out good practice, identifies major players and stakeholders, and highlights priority needs and issues of relevance to policy makers who are involved in the development or management of programmes in developing countries.
Inveneo, Connecting Those Who Need It Most.
Inveneo and their in-country partners design and deliver highly sustainable and affordable ICT solutions for organizations that provide vital services – education, healthcare, economic development – in rural and under-served areas in the developing world.
Photovoltaic Systems
Installing Photovoltaic Systems: A Question and Answer Guide for Solar Electric Systems, Florida Solar Energy Center, May 1999 (PDF 189K).
This Question and Answer Guide for Solar Electric Systems addresses general considerations about photovoltaics (PV) technology and requirements for installing photovoltaic power systems, including building-integrated applications. Contained in this guide are commonly asked questions about the technology, and responses based on current state-of-the-art equipment and industry design practice.
PV GAP: Global Approval Program for Photovoltaics
Standards and Codes of Practice for PV. More information on PV GAP resources can also be found on the Standards page.
Reciprocating Engines (Diesel, Gasoline, Natural Gas)
Technology Characterization: Reciprocating Engines, developed for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency by the Energy Nexus Group, Feb 2002 (PDF 249K).
Reciprocating internal combustion engines are a widespread and well-known technology. North American production exceeds 35 million units per year for automobiles, trucks, construction and mining equipment, marine propulsion, lawn care, and a diverse set of power generation applications.
Refrigeration
Care and Repair of Refrigerators for Vaccine Storage
This page contains PDF training modules for refrigerator technicians produced by WHO between 1985 and 1988 including handbooks on different types of refrigerators and materials from a ten-day course for compression and solar refrigerator repair technicians.
Evaluation of Alternative Refrigerator Models for Primary Health Facilities, Indonesia Ministry of Health and PATH, Apr 2006 (DOC 951K).
The Ministry of Health in collaboration with PATH conducted monitoring on several refrigerators that are currently in use or can become candidates for use at the health center level. Several parameters that should be respected in order to maintain a stable temperature were noted and reported, while an operating cost efficiency based on electricity/fuel consumption per liter capacity of each refrigerator was calculated.
Solar Photovoltaic Refrigeration of Vaccines, Intermediate Technology Development Group, Jul 2002 (PDF 131K).
Solar radiation tends to be high in climates that have great needs for cooling, a great deal of effort has been directed to develop solar powered refrigerators. Solar photovoltaic power for refrigerators has great potential for lower running costs, greater reliability and a longer working life than kerosene refrigerators or diesel generators, which have been generally used in remote areas.
Renewable Energy
Renewable Energy for Rural Health Clinics, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Sep 1998 (PDF 708K).
A guide to the appropriate role of renewables in providing rural health care services, combining technical analysis and practical design, deployment, and training experience. Useful in consideration of renewables for electrifying rural health clinics. May be useful to renewable energy practitioners in designing and deploying their products for health clinic needs. Contains a glossary of renewable energy terms in the appendix.
Renewable Energy Toolkit (REToolkit), The World Bank.
This page provides a broad set of tools to assist the design and implementation of renewable energy (RE) projects, incorporating best practices and lessons learned and addressing practical implementation needs at each stage in the project cycle. Also, watch for an upcoming updated version of the REToolkit.
Waste Management
Managing Health Care Waste Disposal: Guidelines on How to Construct, Use, and Maintain a Waste Disposal Unit, IT Power India, Sep 2004, (PDF 2,730K).
This set of guidelines provide an integrated solution for waste disposal, and clear technical specifications and engineering drawings for each component of the De Montfort Waste Disposal Unit (WDU), while keeping in mind the limitations at different locations when suggesting solutions. In developing these guidelines, controlled testing field trials were conducted and relevant outcomes examined to incorporate design improvements.
Managing Health Care Waste Disposal: Operator’s Manual, World Health Organization, Oct 2004 (PDF 885K).
This manual provides guidelines and explanations on the use of the Waste Disposal Unit (WDU) for operators, describing the components of the WDU, the tasks and decisions facing the operator, the procedures in loading and burning the waste, and the requirements for record-keeping. It also stresses a discipline of instructions – “best practices” to ensure the safety of operators, other personnel and the community at large, and to minimize emissions from the incinerator that are harmful to the environment.
Medical Waste and Cold Chain Information Management, CREATE: Center for Renewable Energy, Appropriate Technology and Environment.
This site introduces a line of products in the specific areas of Healthcare Waste Management, Cold Chain Information Management and Vaccine Refrigeration.
Solar Syringe Melting Oven, CREATE: Center for Renewable Energy, Appropriate Technology and Environment.
Tests indicate that in high insolation countries it is cost-effective to thermally treat used syringes using a solar concentrator system. The solar-powered syringe-melting oven developed has the potential to provide safe and low-cost thermal processing in accordance with Technet recommendations and WHO specifications.
WHO statement on the sustainability of safe and effective systems for the management and final disposal of infectious health care waste, World Health Organization, May 2007 (PDF 100K).
Mobilize government and external funding for the development and maintenance of sound infectious health-care waste management systems.
Wind Turbines
Small Wind Electric Systems: A U.S. Consumer’s Guide, U.S. Department of Energy, March 2005 (PDF 1,270K).
The purpose of this guide is to provide you with the basic information about small wind electric systems to help you decide if wind energy will work for you.
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Last updated: March 15, 2012
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