Health Care Facility Ventilation Standard Incorporated into FGI Guidelines
December 2009
As a move toward a single consensus-based standard of care, a ventilation standard has been incorporated into the Guidelines for Design and Construction of Health Care Facilities, a publication by the Facility Guidelines Institute and published by the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE).
ANSI/ASHRAE/ASHE Standard 170-2008, Ventilation of Health Care Facilities, defines ventilation system design requirements that provide environmental control for comfort, as well as infection and odor control.
The inclusion of Standard 170 in the 2010 edition of the Guidelines replaces much of the ventilation material previously included in the Guidelines. This merger is intended to eliminate potential confusion by having two national ventilation standards for health care.
The Guidelines are used by more than 42 states and several federal agencies to regulate health care facility design and construction around the United States, meaning that in some states Standard 170 is likely to be adopted into code as part of the Guidelines.
