Where does the line get drawn between a doctors office, a nursing home and a hospital? All of these establishments seem to me to be covered in article 517 as health care facilities. But in the past and not so distant past I have seen doctors offices, dentists offices and nursing homes wired in romex, PVC panel feeders, or SE cable feeders. No care is not generally given to a patient in these facilities but examinations are. I have always been confused with the wiring methods used in these installations, is there something I have missed in the code that allows these types of installations?
Doctors Offices Nurse Home Health Care Facilities
- Thread starter guesseral
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Re: Doctors Offices Nurse Home Health Care Facilities
517 does apply to exam rooms in doctors' offices. It applies to anywhere a patient is intended to be examined. But it doesn't apply to areas where patients are not normally examined. So it doesn't apply to the waiting room, receptionists area, break room, etc.
But I am sure there are a lot of exam rooms that don't meet the code requirements.
Steve
517 does apply to exam rooms in doctors' offices. It applies to anywhere a patient is intended to be examined. But it doesn't apply to areas where patients are not normally examined. So it doesn't apply to the waiting room, receptionists area, break room, etc.
But I am sure there are a lot of exam rooms that don't meet the code requirements.
Steve
innersurffer
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Re: Doctors Offices Nurse Home Health Care Facilities
Considering I have worked new construction in a hospital for 6 years with ACHA inspectors and am currently building a stand alone Cancer Center, 517 is followed more carefully when state inspectors get involved rather that local. You also have to consider that there is a lot more bonding rules that apply to critical care and overnight stay of patients in a hospital vs a daytime only doctors office's or cancer treatment centers where only redundant grounding rules apply. I do agree with the previous post that it does only apply to areas that a patient is going to be in, ie exam rooms, treatment rooms,and also halways they may be in but does not apply to employee break rooms or non patient care areas. A lot of companies are now using medical grade M/C cable (it is green in color and has an extra redundant ground wire around the sheath) to comply with the NEC 517 rule of redundant ground. The redundant ground is for compromised patients not to be effected by potential static release in their compromised state.
Considering I have worked new construction in a hospital for 6 years with ACHA inspectors and am currently building a stand alone Cancer Center, 517 is followed more carefully when state inspectors get involved rather that local. You also have to consider that there is a lot more bonding rules that apply to critical care and overnight stay of patients in a hospital vs a daytime only doctors office's or cancer treatment centers where only redundant grounding rules apply. I do agree with the previous post that it does only apply to areas that a patient is going to be in, ie exam rooms, treatment rooms,and also halways they may be in but does not apply to employee break rooms or non patient care areas. A lot of companies are now using medical grade M/C cable (it is green in color and has an extra redundant ground wire around the sheath) to comply with the NEC 517 rule of redundant ground. The redundant ground is for compromised patients not to be effected by potential static release in their compromised state.
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