Healthcare facilities management series最新文献

This Technical Document has been developed to provide the reader with insight into the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations' (JCAHO) Statement of Conditions (SOC) process and recent changes for completing the SOC for Business Occupancies. The intent of this document is not to replace the instructions in Part 1 of the SOC or to give a complete review of the National Fire Protection Agency's (NFPA) Life Safety Code for health care or business occupancies, but rather to complement them.

With the increasing rate of electronic equipment installation, there is a greater need for understanding how equipment affects and is affected by the electrical system that serves it. This document addresses these issues as well as principles of electricity magnetism and electrical system construction as they apply to potential problems. The document is geared for those without an electrical engineering background but do have a basic knowledge of electrical systems and terms.

As health care facilities grow, it becomes easier to lose track of how well access functions are performing--individually or system-wide. This document examines a process to evaluate current access functions in order to determine their effectiveness and target areas for improvement.

OSHA has developed guidelines that are the agency's recommendations for reducing workplace violence, specifically in the health care and social services work environments. These guidelines are intended to be advisory in nature as well as informational in content to assist employers in establishing a safe workplace by creating effective violence prevention programs. These guidelines should be used and adapted to meet the specific needs and resources of each place of employment.

Asbestos has been used in a vast assortment of materials installed in hospitals since the turn of the century. While there is a perception that many regulations pertaining to asbestos have become less stringent, new regulations are continuing to be enacted that require building owners and facilities managers to implement methods of recognition and control for asbestos-containing building materials. Several states have initiated regulations on asbestos consultants and contractors that supersede federal requirements. This document is intended to summarize some of the most important management practices that hospitals should undertake when conducting work that would disturb, or have the potential to disturb, asbestos-containing building materials.

The National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) requirements for testing and exercising on-site standby generators are intended to prevent testing with insufficient load. However, engineers grapple with local and state enforcement agencies who require needlessly oversized standby generators, putting the engineer in the difficult position of using supplementary load banks because of insufficient building load for testing. This document examines the latest changes in NFPA codes and the JCAHO policy that aim to resolve testing issues.

This document updates the recent changes in the Safe Medical Devices Act. Facilities must comply with the new changes effective July 31, 1996. Some information in this document is taken from a previous technical document written in 1992 by Henry Alder. Also included in this document is some FDA information, which can also be obtained through the Freedom of Information Act. Please also note information being offered by the American Hospital Association on page 18.

Using a systems approach to safety and health management through a comprehensive ergonomic program addresses workplace processes, operations and conditions as interdependent systems in order to identify and eliminate or reduce all types of ergonomic hazards to employees. This document examines the way one health care facility improved its ergonomic program using this approach, from early data collection to implementation of the new plan. By creating several teams with different areas of concern, they set out to reduce ergonomic-related injuries in their facility by 10 percent.

This is part two in a two-part series aimed at helping the reader understand and prepare for a world of electrical peculiarities. Part one offered an introduction to harmonics. This document covers practical issues involving the handling and mitigation of harmonic distortion.

Hospital electrical systems shutdowns are an important component to both internal and external disaster planning. An organized, thorough and well-communicated plan can make this important process run smoothly. This document examines the necessary steps in developing and implementing such a shutdown.