**This article was published on 8/5/2016 and updated on 11/15/2021
Protecting patients in hospitals and healthcare facilities
is the top priority of healthcare staff.
Protecting patients during a fire or life safety emergency poses unique
challenges in the healthcare industry when patients are simply unable to
evacuate.
Unique Challenges
for Fire Safety in Hospitals
Hospitals usually consist of several buildings spread out
over a large medical campus, with complex building layouts. Several activities may be occurring such as
surgeries, medical imaging or tests which simply cannot be interrupted. Many
patients are unable to evacuate on their own and staff may be unable to
evacuate patients quickly. If an emergency does require an evacuation, it is
extremely time-consuming and complex with many immobile patients.
Hospitals include patients admitted for longer stays and
patients at the facility for outpatient procedures. Healthcare facilities includes doctors’
offices, ambulatory facilities, and long-term care facilities.
Code Requirements
for Fire Safety in Healthcare
Security at hospitals requires an increased level of
protection compared to other types of facilities with an integrated fire and
life safety system. Most fire alarm requirements in healthcare relate directly
to patient care with emergency procedures, while other requirements are
directly related to the unique nature of critical care in large facilities.
Early detection, adequate alerts, careful monitoring and quick response from
staff and emergency personnel are essential in healthcare.
An integrated commercial
security system provides the
necessary safeguards to protect occupants and patients from fire, smoke, and
gas as well as preventing unauthorized intruders from entering the
facility. Hospitals and healthcare
facilities must adhere to the same national fire and life safety codes as other
organizations as well as meeting the requirements set forth by the Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid (CMS).
You can learn more about the Life Safety Code & Health Care Facilities Code
Requirements for Medicaid and Medicare
providers from CMS.
NFPA Code
Requirements for Healthcare Facilities
The CMS in conjunction with other accrediting
organizations such as the National Fire Protection Association, NFPA, certify
and accredit hospitals and healthcare facilities. Fire safety code requirements include:
NFPA 72: National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code
NFPA 99: Health Care Facilities Code
The CMS requires that healthcare facilities meet the 2012
editions of NFPA 99 and NFPA 101®. CMS
works with various state agencies to assess healthcare facilities for
compliance to the Life Safety Code requirements. State agencies can enter into contracts or
sub-agreements with their State Fire Marshal or Authority Having Jurisdiction
(AHJ) responsible for enforcing their state requirements to fire code safety.
Benefits of an
Integrated Fire Protection System in Hospitals
An integrated fire and life safety system combines all
elements of effective fire and smoke alarm detection with access control
monitoring and physical security into one system.
Remote Monitoring
and Control
Evacuation notification, lockdowns and emergency alerts
can be managed and monitored from a single or numerous control points either on
site or from remote monitoring locations.
Voice and LED
Evacuation
Voice and LED evacuation directions combine with such
elements as remote-control door locking, elevator control, closed circuit video
and motion detection systems in fire or security emergencies. These may be
beneficial in fire emergencies or threatening security events.
Integrated Access
and Monitoring
Integrating card access control with closed circuit TV
monitoring and motion detection, security personnel can track and monitor
suspicious activity within the building or on the external property. Likewise,
security personnel can instantly restrict access by locking all entry doors or
initiating evacuation if a dangerous situation should arise within.
HRSS Offers
Integrated Fire Safety Solutions for Healthcare
High Rise Security Systems, HRSS, is a fire and life safety system provider in the
Chicagoland area with decades of expertise in protecting commercial
properties. We offer fire and life
safety system solutions to hospitals, healthcare facilities and many other
commercial properties including hotels, schools, and businesses of all sizes.
Our fire safety specialists possess deep technical
knowledge of all fire and life safety code requirements and help our clients to
ensure total code compliance with a fire alarm system
designed around your unique building
layout and operations. We offer UL
listed equipment from the leading fire alarm manufacturers in the world
including NOTIFIER® by Honeywell. NOTIFIER®
offers unique solutions for fire safety integration with innovative technology
and first-to-market products like self-testing smoke alarm devices.
HRSS provides turnkey solutions with quality fire alarm
equipment, full system design with AutoCAD and experienced system designers,
fire alarm system testing, inspections, maintenance, repairs and monitoring
24/7/365. Contact us to learn more about code compliant fire and life safety
security integration for healthcare facilities.
This article was originally published at: https://hrsschicago.com/security-alarms/integrated-alarm-systems-safeguarding-health-care-facility/
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