New Hampshire Code of Administrative Rules
He - Department of Health and Human Services
Subtitle He-P - Former Division of Public Health Services
Chapter He-P 800 - RESIDENTIAL CARE AND HEALTH FACILITY RULES
Part He-P 805 - SUPPORTED RESIDENTIAL HEALTH CARE FACILITY LICENSING RULES
Section He-P 805.25 - Fire Safety
Universal Citation: NH Admin Rules He-P 805.25
Current through Register No. 40, October 3, 2024
(a) SRHCFs shall meet one of the following requirements:
(1)
All SRHCFs established after October 25, 2006, shall meet the Health Care
Occupancy Chapter of NFPA 101 as adopted by the commissioner of the department
of safety in Saf-C 6000, and as amended pursuant to
RSA
153:5, I, by the state fire marshal with the
board of fire control; or
(2) All
SRHCFs established prior to October 25, 2006, shall meet at a minimum the
Residential Board and Care Chapter of NFPA 101 as adopted by the commissioner
of the department of safety in Saf-C 6000, and as amended pursuant to
RSA
153:5, I, by the state fire marshal with the
board of fire control.
(b) All SRHCFs shall have:
(1) Smoke detectors on every level and in
every bedroom that are interconnected and either hardwired, powered by the
SRHCF's electrical service, or wireless, as approved by the state fire marshal
for the SRHCF;
(2) At least one ABC
type fire extinguisher on every level or every 75 feet of corridor as required
by NFPA 10; and
(3) An approved
carbon monoxide monitor on every level.
(c) Immediately following any fire or emergency situation, licensees shall notify the department by phone to be followed by written notification within 72 hours, with the exception of:
(1) A false alarm or emergency medical
services (EMS) transport for a non-emergent reason; or
(2) Emergency EMS transport related to
pre-existing conditions.
(d) The written notification required by (c) above shall include:
(1) The date and time of
the incident;
(2) A description of
the location and extent of the incident, including any injury or
damage;
(3) A description of events
preceding and following the incident;
(4) The name of any personnel or residents
who were evacuated as a result of the incident, if applicable;
(5) The name of any personnel or residents
who required medical treatment as a result of the incident, if applicable;
and
(6) The name of the individual
the licensee wishes the department to contact if additional information is
required.
(e) If the licensee has chosen to allow smoking, a designated smoking area shall be provided which has, at a minimum:
(1) A
dedicated ventilation system, so that smoke or odors cannot escape or be
detected outside the designated smoking room;
(2) Walls and furnishings constructed of
non-combustible materials; and
(3)
Metal waste receptacles and safe ashtrays.
(f) A copy of the fire safety plan including fire drill actions shall be made available to and reviewed with the resident, or the resident's guardian or a person with durable power of attorney (DPOA), at the time of admission and a summary of the resident's responsibilities shall be provided to the resident. Each resident shall receive an individual fire drill walk-through within 5 days of admission, as appropriate.
(g) The fire safety plan shall be reviewed and approved as follows:
(1) A copy of the
fire safety plan shall be made available, annually and whenever changes are
made, to the local fire chief for review and approval;
(2) The local fire chief shall give written
approval initially to all fire safety plans; and
(3) If changes are made to the plan, they
shall be submitted to the local fire chief for review and approval, as
appropriate, prior to the change.
(h) Fire drills shall be conducted as follows:
(1) For buildings constructed to the
Residential Board and Care or One and Two Family Dwelling Chapters of the Life
Safety Code (NFPA 101), the following shall be required:
a. The administration of every residential
board and care facility shall have, in effect and available to all supervisory
personnel, written copies of a plan for protecting all persons in the event of
fire, for keeping persons in place, for evacuating persons to areas of refuge,
and for evacuating persons from the building when necessary;
b. Residents shall be trained to assist each
other in case of fire or emergency to the extent that their physical and mental
abilities permit them to do so, without additional personal risk;
c. All SRHCF facilities shall conduct fire
drills not less than 6 times per year on a bimonthly basis, with not less than
2 drills conducted during the night when residents are sleeping. Actual exiting
from windows shall not be required, however opening the window and signaling
for help shall be an acceptable alternative;
d. The drills shall involve the actual
evacuation of all residents to an assembly point, as specified in the emergency
plan, and approved by the department and the local fire authority based on
construction of the building and shall provide residents with experience in
egressing through all exits and means of escape;
e. Facilities shall complete a written record
of fire drills that includes the following:
1.
The date and time including AM/PM the drill was conducted and if the actual
fire alarm system was used;
2. The
location of exits used;
3. The
number of people, including residents, personnel, and visitors, participating
at the time of the drill;
4. The
amount of time taken to completely evacuate the facility;
5. The name and title of the person
conducting the drill;
6. A list of
problems and issues encountered during the drill;
7. A list of improvements and resolution to
the issues encountered during the fire drill; and
8. The names of all staff members
participating in the drill;
f. At no time shall a staff member who has
not participated in a fire drill be the only staff member on duty within the
facility;
g. At least annually, the
facility shall conduct a resident Fire Safety Evacuation Scoring System (FSES)
as listed in NFPA 101A, Alternatives to Life Safety, to determine the residents
needs during a fire drill including, but not limited to, mobility, assistance
to evacuate, staff needed, risk of resistance, residents ability to evacuate on
their own and choose an alternate exit; and
h. The fire drills for facilities built to
the Residential Board and Care chapter of the Life Safety Code (NFPA 101),
shall be permitted to be announced, in advance, to the residents just prior to
the drill;
(2) For all
SRHCFs that were originally constructed to meet the Health Care Occupancy
Chapter of Life Safety Code, NFPA 101 as adopted by the commissioner of the
department of safety in Saf-C 6000, and as amended pursuant to
RSA
153:5, I, by the state fire marshal with the
board of fire control, and the rules and regulations adopted and enforced by
the state fire marshal's office and/or the municipality or have been physically
evaluated, renovated and approved by a New Hampshire licensed fire protection
engineer, the NH state fire marshal's office and the department to meet the
Health Care Occupancy Chapter, the following shall be required:
a. The facility shall develop a fire safety
plan, which provides for the following:
1.
Use of alarms;
2. Transmission of
alarms to fire department;
3.
Emergency phone call to fire department;
4. Response to alarms;
5. Isolation of fire;
6. Evacuation of immediate area;
7. Evacuation of smoke compartment;
8. Preparation of floors and building for
evacuation;
9. Extinguishment of
fire; and
10. Written emergency
telephone numbers for key staff, fire and police departments, poison control
center, 911, and ambulance service(s);
b. Fire drills shall be conducted quarterly
on each shift to familiarize facility personnel including, but not limited to,
medical personnel, maintenance engineers, and administrative staff, with the
signals and emergency action required under varied conditions;
c. Fire drills shall include the transmission
of a fire alarm signal and simulation of emergency fire conditions;
d. Buildings that have a shelter in place,
also known as defend in place, shall have this plan approved by the department
and their local fire chief and shall be constructed to meet the Health Care
Occupancy Chapter of the Life Safety Code;
e. When drills are conducted between 9:00
p.m. and 6:00 a.m., a coded announcement shall be permitted to be used instead
of audible alarms;
f. If the
facility has an approved defend/shelter in place plan, then all personnel,
residents, and visitors shall evacuate to that appropriate location or to the
outside of the building to a selected assembly point and drills shall be
designed to ensure that residents shall be given the experience of evacuating
to the appropriate location or exiting through all exists;
g. Facilities shall complete a written record
of fire drills and include the following:
1.
The date and time including AM/PM the drill was conducted and if the actual
fire alarm system was used;
2. The
location of exits used;
3. The
number of people, including residents, personnel, and visitors, participating
at the time of the drill;
4. The
amount of time taken to completely evacuate the facility or to an approved area
of refuge or through a horizontal exit;
5. The name and title of the person
conducting the drill;
6. A list of
problems and issues encountered during the drill;
7. A list of improvements and resolution to
the issues encountered during the fire drill; and
8. The names of all staff members
participating in the drill; and
h. At no time shall a staff member who has
not participated in a fire drill be the only staff member on duty within the
facility; and
(3) The
facility shall conduct a fire drill in the presence of a representative of the
department, state fire marshal's office, or the local fire department
upon
#8746, eff 10-25-06
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