grounding in exam rooms

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Billy D

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My question pertains to redundant grounding in an exam room.
What is the definition of a patient care area?
Do exam rooms fall under this?
I am wiring a doctors office and the prints call for 4-exam rooms. Each exam room will consist of a small counter with a small hand wash sink and a GFI outlet above counter and wall outlets as per code. I know that Article 517-10 says that business offices, corridors, waiting rooms and the like do not have to follow the wiring methods as specified in Article 517-13, but do these types off exam rooms fall under those wiring methods.

Thank You[/quote]
 
Chris,

The inspector says that if there is no equipment in the rooms that I do not have to run the hospital grade cable and that I can wire it as a normal business office. Is this true??

Thank You
 
Well, if the drawing says that it's an exam room but it has no equipment then exactly what will they be doing in there?
 
nibbles,

If the area is intended for the examination of patients, then in my opinion it is a patient care area.

Take look at the definition of General care areas.

General care areas. Patient bedrooms, examination rooms, treatment rooms, clinics, and similar areas in which it is intended that the patient will come in contact with ordinary appliances such as a nurse call system, electrical beds, examining lamps, telephone, and entertainment devices. In such areas, it may also be intended that patients be connected to electromedical devices (such as heating pads, electrocardiographs, drainage pumps, monitors, otoscopes, ophthalmoscopes, intravenous lines, ect.).

If the "Exam room" has no phone, nurse call ect, then it might not be a "patient care area" and the inspector could be right.

I suspect that if the drawings show that these are in fact "Exam rooms" then they will need to comply with 517.13.

Chris
 
I would consider the metal table/bed with the noisy paper cover "equipment".

Are you sure you understood the inspector right? I don't think most people would agree with that. But if he says its OK, great. But I would want it in writing before I wired it like a normal business office. I would hate for him to see the light on the final.

Steve
 
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