The one scab you should always remove
As I think I’ve noted once or twice over the last little while, I’ve been spending a fair amount of time rummaging around above the ceilings of quality organizations all over the country. One of the more common practices involves the repair of fire rated wall assemblies in which a fire rated gypsum board overlaps the original fire rated gypsum board wall to firestop a penetration. You can see a good example of what this can look like in the field here, with thanks to Mr. Ruben Garcia.
This practice is known as a scab patch. Clearly, there was a time in which this was a standard practice (unless your building is extremely new, it is likely that you have at least one instance of a scab patch somewhere above your ceilings or perhaps in a utility closet/space), but there is definitely a move afoot to start citing these conditions during compliance surveys. Bringing this into the mix makes perfect sense as scab patches are not part of a listed system and are not grandfathered as a function of the requirements relating to existing healthcare occupancies.
What isn’t necessarily clear (at least in the now) is which group of folks are most likely to use this as a strategy for repairing rated barriers. Is it contractors? Is it in-house folks? It seems likely that some education is in order to help folks understand the reasoning behind this as a requirement/compliance vulnerability. Maybe it can be included with some focused sessions on all above-the-ceiling foibles, cabling on sprinkler piping, open j-boxes, etc. To aid you in developing content for that purpose, you might find the following scholarly articles to be most useful:
- https://www.hfmmagazine.com/articles/4632-repairing-fire-rated-assemblies
- https://www.facilitiesnet.com/firesafety/article/Fire-Resistance-The-Forgotten-Protector--19770
When it comes to the physical environment, the survey process has become something akin to peeling off the layers of an onion—there’s always something to target that can make you cry. Let’s work towards fewer tears come next survey!
About the Author: Steve MacArthur is a safety consultant with The Chartis Group. He brings more than 30 years of healthcare management and consulting experience to his work with hospitals, physician offices, and ambulatory care facilities across the country. He is the author of HCPro's Hospital Safety Director's Handbook and is an advisory board member for Accreditation and Quality Compliance Center. Contact Steve at stevemacsafetyspace@gmail.com.