ASHE helps remove requirements for unnecessary exit sign testing

At one time, there was no exit from the endless chore of checking fire exit sign light bulbs — until the American Society for Health Care Engineering (ASHE) and its members helped lead a call to have the practice removed from new code editions.

With the introduction of long-lasting LED exit sign light bulbs, the practice of proactively checking that the bulbs were operational every month in hardwired signs was rendered unnecessary. However, the National Fire Protection Association’s NFPA 101^®, Life Safety Code^®, stated that the practice must be done, effectively wasting hundreds of hours of facilities staff time.

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“I used to have two full-time staff members spending weeks checking exit signs … it was taking a week a month to inspect all the signs,” says Jonathan Flannery, MHSA, CHFM, FASHE, FACHE, senior associate director of regulatory affairs at ASHE. “When we were using incandescent bulbs, I get it, but when we went to LED, the risk of those failing in a 20-year period is minimal.”

After hearing complaints from members of the unnecessary regulatory burden, ASHE got to work collecting member data on exit sign light bulb failure rates and staff time spent conducting inspections. For two years, they collected tens of thousands of records that showed the exit light bulbs were so reliable they only have a 0.01% failure rate, Flannery says.

Following meetings with NFPA committees, the requirement to inspect the light bulbs in hardwired signs was removed from the 2021 edition of NFPA 101. The change serves as an example of the benefit of organized advocacy around health care facilities management field issues. That said, only those organizations allowed to follow the NFPA 101-2024 edition benefit from the change — an issue because CMS continues to use the 2012 edition of NFPA 101 (see discussion in the main article).

“It’s important for facilities managers to stay engaged in advocacy — even if it’s as simple as responding to an ASHE Advocacy Alert,” says Chad Beebe, AIA, CHFM, CFPS, CBO, FASHE, ASHE’s deputy executive director of regulatory affairs. “ASHE needs the perspective of those working in the field every day to help inform and strengthen the work of the Regulatory Affairs Team.”

ASHE offers a variety of ways to get involved with advocacy, including volunteer groups examining advocacy issues or calls for data to investigate the best ways to address regulations, says Austin Wallace, MA, SFP, sustainability senior specialist at ASHE. He recommends people keep an eye on my.ashe.org for opportunities that fit their expertise and background as well as ASHE’s Advocacy Alerts.

“If compliance feels overly burdensome, and you’re left questioning how a requirement improves patient care, it may be a sign that the code is outdated,” Beebe says. “Bring it to ASHE’s attention so we can work together to fix it and continue advancing health care.” 

Chris Dimick is content development and communications manager at the American Society for Health Care Engineering and production editor at Health Facilities Management magazine.