FGI Bulletin #24

Pamela James Blumgart, Longtime Managing Editor and Pillar of FGI, Passes Away

With heavy hearts, FGI announces the passing of beloved editor, friend, and mentor, Pamela James Blumgart. Pamela’s 26-year tenure with FGI began in 1998, and under her meticulous eye, the Guidelines transformed into a comprehensive, authoritative standard for planning, design, and construction of hospitals, outpatient, and residential health care and support facilities.

Pamela was a rare, gifted individual, dedicated to improving FGI and the Guidelines. Her legacy of editorial excellence, dedication, warmth, and kindness will live on in the Guidelines, in health care and residential care facilities, and in the hearts of those she touched.

Her family has shared that memorials may be made to the American Farmland Trust, part of the conservation agriculture movement fighting against climate change, and DC Greens, a local regenerative farm. Pamela will be deeply missed by all who knew and worked with her.

Doug Erickson Receives FGI Pioneer Award

About FGI’s Pioneer Award: Sometimes, if we are lucky, an individual or organization in our midst, inspired by the vision of a new path, embodies the pioneering spirit and perseverance to pursue that path. The dedication and passion of these few ignite others to new levels of performance; they are the pioneers and adventurers who lead us to a preferred future. The Pioneer Award of the Facility Guidelines Institute honors select individuals and organizations of outstanding character who influence or create the future of health and residential care facility design and construction through their contributions and support of the mission and vision of the Facility Guidelines Institute.

FGI is proud to announce that Douglas S. Erickson, FASHE, is a recipient of the FGI Pioneer Award. Doug was presented the award on April 24, 2024, by Tina Duncan, ACHA, AIA, CBO, president of the FGI Board of Directors, at the annual meeting of the Health Guidelines Revision Committee (HGRC) in San Diego.

“It would be impossible to overstate the breadth of Doug’s influence on the health and residential care built environment. He has inspired thousands of volunteers during his 45 years working on the Guidelines for Design and Construction documents. Through his leadership, these individuals have improved the functional use of the Guidelines, resulting in safer and more efficient health care facilities,” says Heather Livingston, FGI CEO. “Every person who accesses health care feels the impact of his extraordinary passion.”

Doug began working on what we now know as the Guidelines documents in 1978 when he worked for The Joint Commission. In the 1980s, Doug assumed a leadership role after the federal government divested itself of the original Minimum Requirements for hospital design. Recognizing the importance of these documents, Doug, along with J. Armand Burgun, FAIA, FACHA, and Joseph G. Sprague, FAIA, FACHA, FHFI, testified before the U.S. Congress in 1984 to obtain permission to take over the revision process for the Minimum Requirements and secure financial support from the U.S. Public Health Service. Their success led to the formation of the HGRC, the multidisciplinary group of federal, state, and private-sector experts tasked with overseeing revisions to the Guidelines documents.

In 1998, seeing the necessity for a dedicated organization to consistently update the Guidelines, Doug, Armand, Joe, and Martin H. Cohen, FAIA, FACHA, cofounded FGI as an independent, not-for-profit entity. FGI took on the responsibility of maintaining and revising the Guidelines through a formal consensus-based process. Since then, the Guidelines, under the stewardship of FGI, have been meticulously reviewed and revised on a regular cycle to reflect the ever-changing landscape of health care delivery, technology, and regulatory requirements.

Doug’s leadership has been instrumental in guiding the next generation of design and construction of safe, effective, and innovative health care facilities. He served as vice chair and later chair of the HGRC for five revision cycles, resulting in the 2001, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018 editions of the Guidelines.From FGI’s inception until 2023, Doug was an active member of the Board of Directors and served as FGI CEO from 2015 to 2023.

“Doug’s leadership style encouraged innovative thinking and adaptability among volunteers and FGI staff,” says John Williams, chair of the HGRC. “The result is comprehensive documents and a sustainable organization that supports the design and construction of safe and effective health and residential care and support facilities.”

To honor Doug’s enduring contributions to the Guidelines, FGI established the Douglas S. Erickson Health Care Research Award in partnership with The Center for Health Design. This award is dedicated to funding research in advancing the design of health care and residential care environments that better support patients and health care professionals. More information about the award and application process will be announced soon.

Your Voice Matters!

Public input is a critical part of the FGI Facility Code revision process, and FGI deeply values your participation. The public comment period is open now through September 30, 2024, and all submitted comments on changes that appear in the draft will be considered by the Health Guidelines Revision Committee (HGRC) before the final documents are published in 2026. Go to www.fgiguidelines.net to submit your comments today!

If you haven’t heard, there are some key changes for the 2026 edition. The Guidelines for Design and Construction has been renamed the FGI Facility Code, and the documents no longer contain advisory guidance (i.e., appendix text). Moving forward, language that formerly was included in the appendices will appear in a new series of handbooks that will be released concurrently with the 2026 FGI Facility Code. Read more about the 2026 changes here.

Linda Dickey Joins FGI Board of Directors

FGI has appointed Linda Dickey, RN, MPH, CIC, FAPIC, to its Board of Directors. Linda brings a wealth of experience to her role on the FGI Board of Directors and a diverse background that includes direct nursing experience in adult critical care and more than 25 years in epidemiology and infection prevention. Linda served on the Health Guidelines Revision Committee (HGRC) from 2007 to 2018 and was chair of the infection prevention topic group during the 2018 revision cycle. She was the 2022 president of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).

“Linda is an unwavering advocate for protecting patients from harm, whether in the clinical or built environment realm. Her deep knowledge of infection prevention practices and her experiences providing safe and supportive health care environments are a natural complement to FGI’s mission to establish and promote consensus-based codes, advised by research, to advance quality health care,” says FGI CEO Heather Livingston. “We congratulate Linda on her accomplishments and are proud to welcome her to the FGI Board of Directors.”

Read more about Linda’s appointment here.

New Interpretations Issued

The following interpretations have been added to the formal interpretations listed on FGI’s website. In addition, each interpretation will be visible when viewing that section in the digital version of the Guidelines.

2022 Hospital Guidelines: Oncology patient care unit

FGI recently received a question about the 2022 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals regarding the location and number of airborne infection isolation/protective environment (AII/PE) rooms in oncology and bone marrow/stem cell (BM/SC) transplant patient care units as required in Section 2.2-2.3 (Oncology Patient Care Unit). The writer asked two questions:

1. When an oncology patient care unit and a BM/SC transplant unit are collocated on the same floor, is an AII/PE room required for each unit?
2. For a BM/SC transplant unit, is it permissible to locate the AII/PE room outside the BM/SC transplant unit to protect immunocompromised patients on the BM/SC transplant unit from the infectious patient who needs the AII/PE room?

The interpretation committee agreed that where an oncology patient care unit and a BM/SC transplant unit are collocated on the same floor, an AII/PE room is required for each unit. These are separate units and Section 2.2-2.3.2.2 (1) (Oncology Patient Care Unit—Protective environment rooms and AII/PE rooms) is clear in its requirement that each unit shall have a minimum of one AII/PE room.

Additionally, the committee agreed that the requirements are clear that it is not permissible to locate the required AII/PE room outside of the BM/SC transplant unit. The intent of Section 2.2-2.3.4.1 (1)(b) (Application: Special Oncology Patient Care Unit—Bone Marrow/Stem Cell Transplant Unit) is to accommodate a potential immunosuppressed patient who also has an airborne infectious disease.

2022 Hospital Guidelines: Support areas for recovery spaces for cesarean delivery suite

FGI also received a question about the 2022 Hospital Guidelines regarding the patient waste requirements in Section 2.2-2.10.11.12 (Support areas for recovery spaces for cesarean delivery suite). The writer asked two questions:

1. Is a bedpan-rinsing device on the patient toilet an equivalent way to meet the patient waste requirements (as it would in an ICU or patient room) without having to add a clinical sink?
2. Would an inwall disposal unit (i.e., a bedpan washer-disinfector) be acceptable in lieu of a clinical sink? Patient waste would be disposed of without entering a corridor and the bedpan would be sterilized elsewhere.

The interpretation committee agreed that a bedpan-rinsing device on the patient toilet could be an equivalent way to meet the requirements in Section 2.2-2.10.11.12 (16) (Clinical sink). The committee also agreed an inwall disposal unit would be acceptable in lieu of a clinical sink.

Furthermore, an erratum was issued for this section that replaces the requirement for a clinical sink with a cross-reference to the requirements in Section 2.1-8.4.3.7 (Human waste disposal systems). The 2022 Health Guidelines Revision Committee (HGRC) revised the requirements for human waste disposal systems with the express intent to provide flexibility for owners and designers; the Steering Committee of the 2026 HGRC believes the requirement for a clinical sink in lieu of a cross-reference to Section 2.1-8.4.3.7 was an oversight.

  

Errata Updates

FGI’s printable errata sheets are helpful for those using the print version of the Guidelines. Users of the digital version of the Guidelines can be assured that the digital view contains each correction documented in our published errata sheets. More information can be found by clicking on the errata tab on any page displaying this feature.

Remember to periodically check the Errata and Addenda page on the FGI website under the Guidelines tab so you don’t miss corrections to errors found in the documents.

Human waste disposal
An erratum for Section 2.2-2.10.11.12 (Support areas for recovery spaces for cesarean delivery suite) in the 2022 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals was published on June 25, 2024. It replaces the requirement for a clinical sink with a cross-reference to the requirements in Section 2.1-8.4.3.7 (Human waste disposal systems). This change will also be reflected in the 2026 edition of the FGI Facility Code for Hospitals.

Patient bathrooms in LDR/LDRP rooms
On August 15, 2024, errata sheets were issued for the 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022 editions of the Hospital Guidelines. The erratum modifies the sections and editions below, which pertain to patient bathrooms in LDR (labor/delivery/recovery) or LDRP (labor/delivery/recovery/postpartum) rooms. Originally, the section specified that each LDR or LDRP room must have direct access to a private toilet room with a shower or tub. The revisions now cross-reference the appropriate sections for requirements for patient toilet rooms and patient bathing facilities.

2022 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals:
Section 2.2-2.10.3.6 (Patient bathroom) now cross-references Section 2.1-2.2.6 (Patient Toilet Room) and Section 2.1-2.2.7 (Patient Bathing Facilities).

2018 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals:
Section 2.2-2.9.3.6 (Patient bathroom) now cross-references Section 2.1-2.2.6 (Patient Toilet Room) and Section 2.2-2.2.2.7 (Patient bathing facilities).

2014 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals and Outpatient Facilities:
Section 2.2-2.11.3.6 (Patient bathroom) now cross-references Section 2.1-2.2.6 (Patient Toilet Room) and Section 2.2-2.2.2.7 (Patient bathing facilities).

2010 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Health Care Facilities:
Section 2.2-2.11.3.7 (Patient bathroom) now cross-references Sections 2.1-2.2.6 (Patient Toilet Room) and Section 2.2-2.2.2.7 (Patient bathing facilities).

This change also will be reflected in the 2026 edition of the FGI Facility Code for Hospitals.

Podcast Season 2 is Here—AND Tell Us What You Think!

The first episode of Season 2 of Between the Lines with FGI is here! Listen in as cohosts John Williams and Bridget McDougall discuss the major changes proposed for the 2026 draft FGI Facility Code documents with guest Leah S.J. Hummel, AIA, CHFM, CHC, Senior Associate Director-Advocacy, American Society for Health Care Engineering. New episodes will drop on the first Friday of every month.

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