Safety

Safety Articles by Topic: Building Maintenance

Questions & Answers

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 12, December 1, 2009

    Q: During a recent inspection, our fire marshal said the five-year standpipe waterflow test is...

Use these nine pointers to avoid life safety pitfalls

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 12, December 1, 2009

    Compliance with The Joint Commission’s life safety and related EC standards often centers on...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, December 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 12, December 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

Survey monitor: Emergency management de-emphasized in Texas survey

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 12, December 1, 2009

    The Joint Commission’s survey at East Texas Medical Center in Tyler continued what appears to...

Hospital Safety Center, December 2009

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 12, December 1, 2009

    Briefings on Hospital Safety is the industry leader in covering The Joint Commission, OSHA, and...

Mac’s Safety Space: With OR humidity, follow CMS and risk assessment findings

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 47, November 18, 2009

    Join Steve MacArthur, safety consultant for The Greeley Company, as he offers advice and best...

Mac’s Safety Space: Digging into why LS.02.01.20 tops the most cited standards list

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 46, November 11, 2009

    Join Steve MacArthur, safety consultant for The Greeley Company, as he offers advice and best...

Life safety concerns top The Joint Commission’s citation list

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 46, November 11, 2009

    In sobering news for hospital safety professionals, four of the top 10 most cited Joint Commission...

CMS now permits six-year damper tests in hospitals

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 45, November 4, 2009

    As we first reported Tuesday on our “HospitalSafety” Twitter account, the Centers for...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, November 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 11, November 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

Survey monitor: Surveyors zoom in on testing and a locked egress door

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 11, November 1, 2009

    During this Joint Commission visit, surveyors looked at glucometers in a lab, air-handler test...

Hospital Safety Center, November 2009

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 11, November 1, 2009

    Briefings on Hospital Safety is the industry leader in covering The Joint Commission, OSHA, and...

Tip of the week: You decide whether to lock electrical panels

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 42, October 13, 2009

    The Joint Commission has no requirements for hospitals to lock electrical panels. However, an...

Mac’s Safety Space: Sinks, ice machines, and a little infection control

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 41, October 7, 2009

    Join Steve MacArthur, safety consultant for The Greeley Company, as he offers advice and best...

Joint Commission reminder: Don’t put portable space heaters at nurses’ stations

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 10, October 1, 2009

    As many of you prepare to enter chillier months, it’s inevitable that portable space heaters...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, October 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 10, October 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

NIOSH questions one method of UV infection control

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 10, October 1, 2009

    Ultraviolet-C light, when pointed straight down into a surgical site for infection control...

Expect continued survey focus on life safety compliance

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 10, October 1, 2009

    In our report from the annual ASHE conference, we look at why life safety compliance will continue...

Hospital Safety Center, October 2009

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 10, October 1, 2009

    Briefings on Hospital Safety is the industry leader in covering The Joint Commission, OSHA, and...

Questions & Answers

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 10, October 1, 2009

    Q: During some research in the area around our main security control room, we discovered that two...

Watch for an overabundance of ornaments, artwork

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 10, October 1, 2009

    It won’t be long before holiday decorations start to show up on units and offices, which...

Mac’s Safety Space: Behavioral settings are tailor-made for risk assessments

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 38, September 16, 2009

    Join Steve MacArthur, safety consultant for The Greeley Company, as he offers advice and best...

Examine risks and solutions related to Pseudomonas

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a bacteria that—like Legionella —lives in water pipes as...

Food plant explosion tests burn center’s surge plan

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    For University of North Carolina (UNC) Hospitals in Chapel Hill, a previous industrial accident...

Eyewash stations: Although not a regulation, ANSI Z358.1 wields influence

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    What is tepid water? For the purposes of eyewash safety, the American National Standards Institute...

Hospital Safety Center, September 2009

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    Briefings on Hospital Safety is the industry leader in covering The Joint Commission, OSHA, and...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance September 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

Joint Commission issues new caution about penetrations

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    When the chief engineer at The Joint Commission warns facilities about a life safety deficiency...

CMS sticks with traditional fire watch stance

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    For now, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will continue to observe fire watch...

LSC is light on document mandates, but don't be lax

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    One of the biggest potential pitfalls of any life safety inspection of your facility is whether you...

Older building proves ripe for life safety scrutiny

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    As part of an old facility, Oregon State Hospital’s (OSH) Portland and Salem behavioral...

Bassinet warmer involved in fire recalled by company

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    A medical equipment company has issued a voluntary recall of a line of infant bassinet warmers...

Your SOC submissions act as living documents

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    The Joint Commission created the Statement of Conditions (SOC) to help facility managers assess...

Questions and Answers

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    Q. Is it permitted to have a time clock in an exit stairwell of a hospital? My vice president of...

Follow specific dimensions for ?No Exit? signs

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 9, September 1, 2009

    Many of you have heard about surveyors or inspectors who focus on exit signs and their required...

Tip of the week: Take this step when PFI funding is denied

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 35, August 26, 2009

    Generally, The Joint Commission would prefer to see your plans for improvement (PFIs) funded when...

Tip of the week: An informal assignment from The Joint Commission

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 33, August 12, 2009

    A Joint Commission official assigned all attendees of the American Society for Healthcare...

Hospital Safety Center, August 2009

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 8, August 1, 2009

    Briefings on Hospital Safety is the industry leader in covering The Joint Commission, OSHA, and...

Questions & Answers

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 8, August 1, 2009

    Q: Our fire policy states that someone must be posted at the elevator during a fire alarm to make...

Confessions of a former life safety specialist: Corridor clutter is among common tour snags

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 8, August 1, 2009

    Corridor clutter is always on the radar for surveyors. Gone is the old myth that you are allowed to...

Joint Commission revision:You don’t need fire watches for planned disruptions

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 8, August 1, 2009

    The Joint Commission’s amended fire watch policy is bound to make your accreditation...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, August 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 8, August 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

Survey monitor: HVA and other disaster preparations receive scrutiny

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 8, August 1, 2009

    The Joint Commission’s 2009 life safety and emergency management chapters have proven to be...

Cut your energy bills with these award-winning ideas

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 8, August 1, 2009

    What does going full tilt on environmentally green efforts get you, really, in this economy? A...

Mac’s Safety Space: BMP and a tale of hiding in plain site

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 31, July 29, 2009

    Join Steve MacArthur, safety consultant for The Greeley Company, as he offers advice and best...

Life safety deficiencies top 2008’s citation list, says The Joint Commission

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 30, July 22, 2009

    It won’t take long for this cheery news to reach your bosses: Life Safety Code (LSC...

Tip of the week: Watch for this inadvertent exit sign violation

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 29, July 15, 2009

    The 2000 edition of the Life Safety Code (LSC) requires hospitals to post exit signs that are...

Joint Commission engineer: BMP won’t return in 2010

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 28, July 8, 2009

    As we first reported last week on Mac’s Safety Space, there appear to be no plans by The...

Questions & Answers

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 7, July 1, 2009

    Q. Are smoke detectors required to be installed in hospital corridors? I attended a seminar...

Discrepancy in EC.02.03.05?: Joint Commission test appears to conflict with NFPA 25

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 7, July 1, 2009

    : As some of you may have noticed, The Joint Commission’s provisions for main drain tests...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, July 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 7, July 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

Joint Commission test appears to conflict with NFPA 25

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 26, June 24, 2009

    In an exclusive story from HCPro, it appears The Joint Commission?s provisions for main drain tests...

Construction crew exposed to small amount of mercury at a hospital

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 25, June 17, 2009

    A trio of construction workers at the Phoenix Veterans Affairs Medical Center got a surprise when a...

Questions & Answers

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 6, June 1, 2009

    Should a freestanding medical office (business occupancy) be required to evacuate everyone when an...

Inaccessible dampers bring with them long-term ILSMs

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 6, June 1, 2009

    It’s well known that The Joint Commission grants leeway to hospitals when it comes to...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, June 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 6, June 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

Know you morgue's limits, then prepare for an overflow

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 6, June 1, 2009

    Under Joint Commission standard EM.02.02.11, there is a brief mention of managing mortuary services...

Guard your turf during community responses on-site

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 6, June 1, 2009

    February 12 started as a routine day in San Jose, CA, at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center...

Newly published FAQs shed light on common confusions

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 6, June 1, 2009

    In the spirit of its 2009 standards offering greater clarification to help hospital compliance, The...

Nine cost-cutting pointers for belt-tightened times

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 6, June 1, 2009

    On the surface, it would appear that trimming hospital budgets would have a negative effect on...

Briefings on Hospital Safety, June 2009

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 6, June 1, 2009

    Briefings on Hospital Safety is the industry leader in covering The Joint Commission, OSHA, and...

SPECIAL EDITION: Coverage from the Hospital Safety Center Symposium

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 20, May 14, 2009

    Hospital actions in response to the H1N1 swine flu outbreak served as a "good dress...

Construction chute contributes to an AZ hospital fire

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 19, May 12, 2009

    A fire in an outside Dumpster climbed up an attached construction debris chute and into part of a...

Questions & Answers

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    Magnetic latches on suites We recently had an inspection in our hospital where the inspector cited...

Book excerpt: Learn how LS.01.01.01 ties into SOC provisions

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    The Joint Commission?s 2009 life safety chapter incorporates many of the provisions under the old...

NFPA: Cooking fires remain the top threat in hospitals

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    Every year in hospitals and hospices, there are 1,600 fires that result in an average of one death...

Door gaps and wire tied to sprinkler brace grab notice

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    The life safety specialist who visited Parrish Medical Center in Titusville, FL, was a former Air...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, May 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

Briefings on Hospital Safety May 2009

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    Briefings on Hospital Safety is the industry leader in covering The Joint Commission, OSHA, and...

Simple steps may help avoid life safety compliance woes

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    Although it might sound like obvious advice, plenty of safety officers have nonetheless slipped on...

Keep new technology leashed until you learn its behavior

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    Given the Obama administration’s goal of improving healthcare information technology systems...

Consider pollution control devices for EtO rules

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 5, May 1, 2009

    Hospitals in the compliance soup of the Environmental Protection Agency’s new rule mandating...

Tip of the week: In the wake of TB exposures, check your facility’s isolation rooms for air leaks

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 15, April 15, 2009

    A pediatric physician-in-training who inadvertently saw young patients at three Chicago area...

Questions & Answers

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 4, April 1, 2009

    We currently have a building maintenance program (BMP) that surveyors said was a good program...

Documentation and doors remain survey trouble spots

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 4, April 1, 2009

    To nip potential Joint Commission problems before they become bigger, you may want to immediately...

Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, April 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 4, April 1, 2009

    Healthcare Life Safety Compliance exclusively covers life safety issues in healthcare facilities...

Symposium spotlight: Brad Keyes will detail the importance of life safety drawings

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 9, March 4, 2009

    Considering our first item above, you’ll have a renewed appreciation of life safety floor...

Life safety violations top The Joint Commission's most cited standards list

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 9, March 4, 2009

    In a statistic that can only be bad news for hospitals, the former EC.5.20 was the most cited Joint...

Roof fire offers insights to fine-tune your response plans

  • Hospital Safety Center, Issue 3, March 1, 2009

    A fire on the roof of a New Hampshire hospital proved the need to keep tabs on projects involving...

Hospital window is partially implicated in a patient’s death

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 8, February 25, 2009

    A hospital in Indiana is reconfiguring its patient bedroom windows to no longer fully open after a...

Tip of the week: Think about how you’d locate a missing patient

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 1, January 7, 2009

    Last month, we reported on a patient who wandered onto the roof of The University of Pittsburgh...

The time is here - new life safety standards take effect

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 1, January 1, 2009

    With The Joint Commission’s new life safety standards taking effect on January 1, let’s...

Tip of the week: Check the status of your kitchen hoods

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 49, December 3, 2008

    A few weeks back, we read about a hospital that received some unwanted surveyor attention related...

Watch for door gap scrutiny, multiple concerns in 2009

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 12, December 1, 2008

    Seven tips to keep you ahead By now, most of you have had a chance to peruse The Joint...

Life safety citations play a big role in lingering struggle

  • Healthcare Life Safety Compliance, Issue 12, December 1, 2008

    In an example of the long-term ramifications behind requirements for improvement (RFI) from The...

Voters approve tax levy for hospital equipment upgrades

  • Hospital Safety Connection, Issue 47, November 12, 2008

    While the eyes of the world were on the U.S. presidential race, taxpayers in Pomeroy, WA, had their...