Electrical systems present some of a healthcare facility’s most critical property damage and business interruption exposures. Electrical disturbances not only cause chaos for healthcare facility managers, but they can also pose a major threat to patient care. Prioritizing electrical maintenance to ensure a healthcare facility is up to date with code and standard changes is critical for promoting electrical safety related to patient care, as well as to inspection, testing and maintenance activities.
The National Fire Protection Association’s Health Care Facilities Code (NFPA 99) is one of the industry’s most important set of safety guidelines intended to improve the reliability of healthcare electrical infrastructure. For decades, it has continuously evolved to help reduce fire, explosion and electricity hazards for patients, staff, or visitors across all healthcare environments. The 2024 edition of NFPA 99 has evolved to include the implementation of a comprehensive electrical maintenance program, which is a valuable framework for establishing and maintaining the condition of electrical equipment and systems for safety and reliability. While this iteration puts forth the most up to date guidelines for healthcare environments, it is not the version that many healthcare regulatory bodies and accrediting agencies have adopted today. This is exactly what the latest recommended practice-turned-standard, NFPA 70B, Standard for Electrical Equipment Maintenance, hopes to instill among facility professionals. To make electrical equipment maintenance easier, NFPA 70B’s shift from a recommended practice to a standard provides more enforceable guidelines for what is required to maintain a safe electrical environment.