The Facility Guidelines Institute 2018 edition covers several minimum standards for outpatient facilities and the doctor’s office. Flooring is high among these, and medical offices will need to make sure they’re up to date with these requirements. When looking for medical office flooring ideas, keep the following factors in mind:
Patients of Size: Experts in patient handling have changed some wording, so that the term “bariatric patient” is now replaced with “patient of size.” This helps cover patients who don’t fit the definition of clinical obesity, but still require clearances and capacities dependent on size. Ensure door openings and lifts are equipped to handle patients of size so that they still have access to all patient areas of the facility.
Floor Area: Before, it wasn’t always clear whether clinical spaces needed to follow guidelines for procedure rooms or operating rooms (ORs). There have been some adjustments, including the floor area required for each. Procedure rooms now have a minimum clear floor area requirement of 130 square feet, down from 150. The minimum clear floor area for an operating room is 255 square feet. Fixed encroachments such as an anesthesia machine can be accommodated, but make sure you’re following required clearances.
Additional floor area requirements have been adjusted. For instance, clear floor area for an endoscopy procedure room has been reduced to 180 square feet, from 200.
Outpatient Psychiatric: The guidelines are far more specific now on outpatient psychiatric facilities. Space requirements have been added for a number of room types. They also must allow for “clear path of escape for staff” to be incorporated in the design and implementation of rooms where risk assessments find such a need.
Experienced Outpatient Flooring Installation: These guidelines are very specific. It might feel overwhelming at first, but the deeper you plumb into them, the clearer they become. When you need adjustments in your doctor’s office flooring or are searching for medical office flooring ideas, make sure to trust a South Florida flooring contractor with extensive experience in outpatient flooring installation.
