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ASHE has confirmed that a new memo from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) does apply to hospitals and may have wide-reaching implications for health care facilities. CMS is easing its waiver process, allowing hospitals to take advantage of four provisions in the 2012 edition of NFPA 101: Life Safety Code® – including an important provision that allows certain items to be placed in corridors.

Corridor clutter currently ranks among the top Joint Commission citations. Hospitals are often cited for items such as carts being left in corridors because previous versions of the Life Safety Code (including the 2000 edition used by CMS) did not specifically allow them.

CMS issued a Survey & Certification Group memo on March 9, 2012, saying it will consider waivers to permit facilities to take advantage of the following provisions from the 2012 edition of the Life Safety Code:

• Previously restricted items can be placed in exit corridors.
• The kitchen can be open to an exit corridor under certain circumstances.
• Installation of direct-vent gas fireplaces and solid fuel burning fireplaces will be allowed.
• Combustible decorations are allowed in certain areas.

To allow facilities to enact the four provisions, CMS said in the memo that it will consider waivers of its current requirements without requiring facilities to show “unreasonable hardship.”

The memo caused some initial confusion because it mentioned health care facilities but stressed the implications for nursing homes. ASHE has confirmed with CMS that the memo applies to all applicable health care facilities, including hospitals. ASHE Codes and Standards Director Chad Beebe, AIA, SASHE, said the CMS memo is a step in the right direction. “It’s nice to see recognition of the value of the latest edition of the Life Safety Code,” he said.

ASHE has posted a one-page, updated Issue Brief outlining the CMS memo and its implications for hospitals. The full CMS memo is also posted under the Resources tab on the ASHE website. ASHE is currently working with the Joint Commission to determine its regulatory approach to this issue, and will keep members updated about this topic in the future.

For more information on the memo or to get involved with ASHE advocacy work, contact ASHE Director of Codes and Standards Chad Beebe at cbeebe.aha@gmail.com or 312-422-3824.

The Kansas City Area Healthcare Engineers has created a new paid, part-time position that will work closely with the KCAHE Board.  The Executive Director will be responsible for managing the organizations’ day-to-day activities including communications, record keeping and logistics. The addition of this position will provide KCAHE the opportunity to grow as an organization in presence and propriety as well as contribute to the groups’ overall success.

For the full job description, CLICK HERE.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is considering changing the low-end humidity requirement in operating rooms from 35 percent to 20 percent, according to the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) of the American Hospital Association. ASHE has received word from CMS headquarters that the agency is looking to change its policy and that a draft memo on the subject is currently undergoing an internal review at CMS. More …

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule October 18, 2011, that could affect many ASHE members and save hospitals across the country billions of dollars. The rule would revise the Medicare Conditions of Participation, which hospitals must follow to qualify for reimbursement from the Medicare and Medicaid programs. The rule seeks comments on whether CMS should adopt the 2012 edition of NFPA 101: Life Safety Code®, an edition that is closer than previous editions to the International Codes often used in health care construction. If the 2012 edition of the Life Safety Code is adopted, hospitals would face fewer costly instances of conflicting codes. ASHE supports the adoption of the 2012 edition for the reasons outlined in this position statement.

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ASHE is one of several organizations partnering with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on a new initiative to prevent surgical fires. The Preventing Surgical Fires project aims to increase awareness of factors that contribute to these preventable fires and to promote the adoption of risk reduction strategies throughout the health care community. An estimated 550 to 650 surgical fires occur in the United States every year, and some cause serious injury, disfigurement, or death.

The FDA regulates drugs and devices that can contribute to surgical fires, including skin preparation agents, oxygen, lasers, and surgical drapes, and it reviews product labeling to make sure warnings of fire risk are included when appropriate. But the FDA says regulatory efforts alone are not enough to prevent surgical fires. The new initiative provides recommendations and information for health care professionals, hospitals, and patients.

ASHE Engineering and Compliance Director John Collins was part of the FDA group that created the initiative. Collins said surgical fires are well understood and can be prevented. “It’s a real simple problem,” he said. “It just keeps reoccurring because people don’t pay attention.” The initiative will shine a spotlight on the issue, hopefully reducing the number of surgical fires by sharing best practices and encouraging consistent education to staff on ways to prevent the fires, Collins said.

More information on the initiative can be found online at www.fda.gov/preventingsurgicalfires.

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Recent conflicting study results have illuminated the need for further assessment of sensor-regulated faucets to determine when their use is appropriate in health care facilities. A recent abstract from the Johns Hopkins Health System discussing research on their local experience has led to much media coverage of electronic faucet use and instigated a review of the state of the art by several professional organizations. Under the leadership of ASHE, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), and the Facility Guidelines Institute (FGI), a stakeholders coalition has been formed with the goals of (1) increasing overall knowledge of biofilm in clinical settings; (2) gaining clinical and technical support to help assess infection control issues associated with manual and electronic faucets; and (3) gathering data on the use of faucets, particularly sensor-regulated faucets, in the health care environment. To learn more about the work of this coalition, read the joint ASHE–APIC–SHEA statement.

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Some advisories are only viewable if you are a member of ASHE. Want to enjoy all the benefits of ASHE? Click here to join.

On June 1, the Kansas City Area Healthcare Engineers received a thank you letter from Kevin Truman, Ph.D., Dean of the School of Computing and Engineering, for its contribution to the school’s scholarship fund. KCAHE made a payment of $2,500. To read the full thank you note, click here to view the pdf.

The Kansas City Area Healthcare Engineers is pleased to announce it has maintained ASHE’s Gold Level of Affiliation for 2010.

The plaques recognizing each participating chapter for their accomplishments will be presented during the Chapter Leadership Award Luncheon to be held Sunday, July 17, 2011, the day prior to the opening session of the 48th ASHE Annual Conference & Technical Exhibition in Seattle. As well, each chapter will be recognized on Monday, July 18 at 1:45 p.m. in front of all conference attendees.

Required Criteria for Gold Level:

1. Maintain between 25% dual membership (individuals must hold both active chapter and ASHE national membership).
2. Chapter President AND President-elect must maintain active ASHE membership. 
3.  Attendance at the annual Chapter Leadership Forum by at least one chapter officer.
4. Offer between 16-23 hours of annual educational programming. IMPORTANT: Calculate education hours only. Remember, exhibits, social events, board mtgs., lunch, etc., does not count toward total hours. (i.e., a two hour meeting that includes an hour of chapter business and an hour of education by a presenter will only count as 1 hour)
5. Submit name and contact information of your current chapter Advocacy liaison/committee chairman.
6. Distribute a minimum six (6) or more communications to chapter members/customers.
7. Submit your 2010 Emerging Regional Leader Award Application.
8. Maintain an active chapter website that links from the ASHE website to your chapter URL.
9. Include a Chapter Annual Report that includes the following:
   1. Annual Planning Objectives for 2010-2011
   2. Bylaws
   3. Operating Budget for 2010-2011
   4. Current Chapter Officers for 2010-2011

Recent news stories about the potential for a higher occurrence of Legionella spp. in electronic-eye faucets may be raising some concern among the infection preventionists and other clinical staff in your health care organization… (Click here to read the entire advisory)

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The Kansas City Area Healthcare Engineers has published its calendar of events for the year. KCAHE provides at least one opportunity for education and networking each month, either through regulary monthy meetings or special events. 

The first meeting is January 11, where the Board will discuss the upcoming year’s goals. Other special events include the annual golf outing in August, the Fall Extravaganza in October and the Holiday Social in December.

To view the full calendar and event sponsors, click here.