Imaging and procedure rooms fall into several size categories — small procedure rooms, typical imaging rooms, or larger specialty imaging rooms. Diagnostic equipment has generally become more compact over time. For example, equipment used for chest X-rays, mammography, ultrasound, and pulmonary and neurodiagnostic testing is compact and commonly mobile, requiring only a small procedure room. Most general radiographic and fluoroscopic equipment can be accommodated in a typical imaging room. Computed tomography (CT) units are also becoming more compact but require a contiguous control room. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and interventional procedure suites require a larger footprint that includes the procedure room, control room, and adjacent space for equipment (or system) components. Imaging equipment may also require lead shielding, enhanced floor loading capacity, and other unique design features. The FGI Guidelines also classify imaging rooms based on different levels of patient acuity and intervention.
Cynthia Hayward
The Hospital Pharmacy — Now a Sophisticated Manufacturing Plant
Automation — with the barcode as the foundation — has transformed the hospital pharmacy into a high-tech manufacturing plant that allows pharmacists to focus on direct patient care. Although automation in the pharmacy requires a significant capital investment, it reduces labor costs, lowers the risk of dispensing errors, optimizes inventory control, and provides better security, among other benefits.
Physician Offices and Outpatient Clinics: How Many Exam Rooms?
Physician offices and outpatient clinics typically consists of a patient intake area with space for reception, check-in/check-out, and waiting; exam/treatment space with a number of identical exam rooms, several office/consultation rooms, and one or more special procedure rooms; and associated clinical and administrative support space. Physician office space may be located in a medical office building (either freestanding or connected to a hospital), co-located with diagnostic and treatment services in a comprehensive ambulatory care center, or part of an institute or center organized along a specific service line — such as a Sports Medicine Center, Heart Center, or Cancer Center. Planning space for physician offices (also referred to as physician practice space) and outpatient clinics begins with determining how many exam rooms are needed and two different approaches are commonly used.
How Many Hospital Parking Spaces?
Healthcare facilities need to provide a sufficient number of parking spaces for patients, staff, service traffic, and the public. At a minimum, parking standards or requirements developed by local authorities having jurisdiction should be consulted since these will reflect the availability of public transportation, public parking facilities, or other alternatives. This article provides some general rules-of-thumb for estimating the number of parking spaces for patients being admitted/discharged, visitors to inpatient nursing units, hospital staff, outpatients, and emergency patients and their escorts.
Assessing the Capacity of Major Clinical Services
Healthcare organizations vary significantly in the number of expensive procedure rooms and equipment units that they use to accommodate similar numbers of annual procedures. This is why it is important to look at the current capacity prior to deciding to expand the number of procedure rooms and related support space, particularly those clinical services that use expensive equipment and uniquely-designed procedure rooms.
Understanding the Impact of USP 800 on Pharmacies
Research studies over the past several decades have indicated the possible harmful effects on healthcare workers from low-level work-related exposure to any of more than 200 medications that are considered hazardous drugs. As a result, the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) — a nonprofit compendium of drug information — published the nation’s first standards on the handling of hazardous drugs from receipt to disposal. Chapter 800, titled “Hazardous Drugs — Handling in Healthcare Settings,” applies to all healthcare personnel who handle hazardous drug preparations and all entities that store, prepare, transport, or administer hazardous drugs, such as pharmacies, hospitals, clinics, and physician offices. Hazardous drugs include those used for cancer chemotherapy, antiviral drugs, hormones, and some bioengineered drugs. Effective December 1, 2019, most pharmacies need to comply with USP 800.