Case study: How to use NFPA 101 suite requirements for health care applications

Suite insights

• Creating multiple suites within a hospital wing can allow for flexibility while still being code compliant.
• Newer editions of NFPA 101 continue to adapt to new conditions, so it’s important to stay up-to-date on requirements and best practices.

Working with a health system on a life safety survey and plan update, Henderson Engineers identified an issue involving a patient care nonsleeping suite. The specific area involved a cesarean section (C-section) suite adjacent to an area with patient sleeping rooms.

According to staff, the C-section area was an ideal space for a suite because it had high traffic and included patient beds and other equipment required for treatment that remained in the circulating space for a period. After identifying the space as a suite, another NFPA 101: Life Safety Code issue was identified by requiring a corridor to exit through a suite. This is not permitted because corridors are required to provide access to an approved exit. In this case, the scenario resulted in a dead-end corridor, which is only permitted to be 30 feet in existing sprinklered health care occupancies.

Figure 1: A diagram demonstrating the challenges engineers and designers faced when created a patient nonsleeping suite. Courtesy: Henderson Engineers

Adjacent suites as a solution

After confirming with staff that the C-section suite is critical for patient care/treatment, the team identified that creating another suite adjacent to the cesarean section suite would be a good option. By doing so, they were able to maintain NFPA 101 compliance and offer additional flexibility to staff for patient care in the identified area.

The new suite was compliant by:

• Allowing suite to suite egress between adjacent suites.

• Providing each suite with an exit access/corridor door.

• Separating suites from other suites and the remainder of the building by construction required for corridor walls.

• Having a dead-end corridor that is allowable by NFPA 101.

• Allowing the cesarean section suite to remain a suite thus enabling maximum flexibility for patient care/treatment.

Figure 6: Designers utilized adjacent suites in this health care facility to increase flexibility and guarantee code compliance. Courtesy: Henderson Engineers

Understanding the types of suites and their respective requirements in addition to working with facilities and their staff to understand how spaces are used can result in identifying appropriate areas that will be incorporated into a project. While suites are not a requirement of the code, they are an option that allows for greater flexibility while maintaining a safe environment, allowing staff to focus on patient care and treatment.

As the newer editions of NFPA 101 have continued to adapt to new conditions, suite requirements also adjust accordingly. It is, however, important to remember that health care facilities under the current Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services requirements must follow the 2012 edition.

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