Environment of Care (EC) (Critical Access Hospitals / Critical Access Hospitals)
Design Criteria - Clinical Sink in an Outpatient Setting
Publish | January 01, 0001
What is the requirement for design criteria on clinical sinks in an outpatient setting?
Standard EC.02.06.05 states that The Joint Commission uses the 2010 edition of the FGI Guidelines for Design and Construction of Health Care Facilities. 3.1-3.2 requires a hand-washing station within general purpose examination and observation rooms, special purpose examination rooms, and treatment rooms within outpatient facilities. Also, 3.1-3.6.5 requires hand-washing stations in each room where hands-on patient care is provided in outpatient facilities. For specific outpatient facility types, within examination and treatment rooms, hand-washing sinks are required for primary care outpatient facilities (3.2), small primary care outpatient facilities (3.3), free-standing outpatient diagnostic and treatment facilities (3.4), free-standing urgent care facilities (3.5), and outpatient surgical facilities (3.7). Freestanding cancer treatment facilities (3.6) requirements do not mention examination rooms, just open cancer treatment areas with a common hand-washing station for every four patient stations. These requirements are applicable for new facilities and when renovation is done to exiting facilities. Whether sinks are required for existing exam rooms would be dependent upon the FGI requirements and the organization's licensing authority requirements at the time of construction. [EC.02.06.05]
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