By Healthcare Facilities Today

The new edition of the Facility Guidelines Institute's (FGI) Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals and Outpatient Facilities and the new, separate publication, Guidelines for Design and Construction of Residential Health, Care, and Support Facilities, will give standard of care for hospitals, ambulatory care, and residential health and other care facilities, according to an article on the Health Facilities Management website.

Available in the first quarter of this year, the 2014 edition was written by a committee of more than 125 health care experts and includes significant changes, including new language on safety risk assessments and medication safety zones; revamped surgery, dialysis and endoscopy requirements; increased requirements for commissioning infrastructure systems.

In addition to these revisions, FGI separates the hospital and ambulatory requirements from nursing homes and other residential and long-term care requirements.

Jane Rohde, AIA, FIIDA, ACHA, AAHID, LEED AP, of JSR Associates Inc., was appointed to co-chair the effort with a group of representatives of residential care and health organizations and the Rothschild Foundation, according to the article. The result is a new standard supporting contemporary concepts in health, care, and support services for the elderly and others who require long-term services.

Read the article.