The Green House Project is excited to report that the Pioneer Network/Rothschild Regulatory Task Force’s life safety code revision recommendations submitted to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) have been approved and will be incorporated into the 2012 edition of to NFPA 101® Life Safety Code®. These recommendation, which the Green House Project participated in shaping, are a major advance in supporting core culture change practices in nursing homes. They include four proposals that, in the words of the NFPA’s website, will help to”foster a more comfortable, home-like environment.” Per the The Pioneer Network’s press release, these revisions include:
Kitchens serving no more than 30 residents will be permitted to be open to the corridor and other spaces, and either residential or commercial stoves or cooktops may be used provided certain criteria are met.
Furniture may be provided in corridors so that residents can sit and rest and then continue to their destination provided certain criteria are met.
Combustible decorations will be permitted in resident rooms, corridors, on doors, and in common space. There are limitations on the percentage of coverage depending on whether the building is sprinklered and where located.
Gas or electric fireplaces will be allowed to be used in smoke compartments that contain sleeping rooms, but not within individual sleeping rooms, with some restrictions. Some of the restrictions are that the controls must be locked and a sealed glass front must be provided to prevent anyone from throwing object into the flames.
The Green House Project is deeply grateful to The Pioneer Network and the Hulda B. and Maurice L. Rothschild Foundation. for their leadership and tireless efforts to accomplish this success.
