Facilities Are Still Required To Maintain Life Safety Regulations

With much uncertainty surrounding the weeks ahead one thing you can count on is CE-Tech to be ready and willing to help you maintain a safe environment for not only your patients but for your staff and visitors as well.
With the suspension of surveys, does not come the suspension of safety. Regulatory agencies expect the standard of safety to still be met. Your fire alarm system, fire extinguishers, medical gas system, emergency lights, and bio-medical equipment testing are just as important to patient safety today as they were 3 months ago. This is how your inspectors will view it, just as I would. As a previous inspector, I know what others will be focusing on. These months of chaos will be looked at just as thorough (if not more so ) as any other month.
Please think about the following questions:
  • If your facility was closed, were systems maintained to ensure reliability when you reopened?
  • If your facility stayed open, did you provide a safe environment for your patients and staff?
Inspectors will not be lenient to “we were dealing with COVID19, so we did not have the fire alarm inspected” or “with everything going on, the generator was not on the priority list”. Life Safety is not just a compliance check-off list, it is a mindset. One of security, which we all need right now.
Though the thought of CMS, AHCA, and the deeming agencies suspending surveys bring some relief, it does not defer the requirements set forth by them. CMS and The Joint Commission have stated that bio-medical testing is a Condition of Participation and should be addressed as such. Just as you would not forego best practices for nursing,neither would you for Life Safety. In this time of uncertainty, we must still remember safety first. Whether it be social distancing, procedures with sharps, dry times with Duraprep or conducting fire drills and extinguisher checks, we must keep ourselves and those around us safe. Maintaining services and equipment is not only for compliance, but it also decreases equipment failure (cost ) , lengthens equipment life (cost ) and increases systems operation in an emergency (life savings ) .
In this moment of added precautions, let us not forget our foundation of Life Safety our elemental promise to everyone…we will keep you safe.

We Are Here To Help You

This pandemic will eventually pass us by, you may be left with questions surrounding deficiencies or waivers that could apply to your facility.
We are here to help, we can answer many of those questions for you. Please give us a call so we can help you maintain a facility that not only meets the requirements set forth by the governing bodies but also an environment that is safe for your patients, staff, and visitors.
If we can assist with your Life Safety or Facilities Management needs please give us a call at 800-333-7477.

Survey Announcements

  • CMS announced they would only perform surveys at Priority 1 facilities and those with prior Infectious Control Issues.
  • The Joint Commission has suspended surveys at most facilities. As an exception, any high-risk situations will be handled on a case by case basis.
  • AAAHC has postponed non-emergency surveys now through May 1.
  • AHCA is prioritizing surveys to high-risk situations and preforming phone interviews as opposed to sending people to the facilities.