Consider fire safety at the earliest stage

Writing in HEJ last summer, Paul Beech, an independent fire safety consultant and fire safety trainer at Eastwood Park, raised his concerns about what he believed was a ‘lack of response in healthcare facilities to changes in fire safety guidance’, and considered the key changes to HTM 05-01 (2nd edn 2013) and HTM 05-02, and the implications for healthcare fire safety personnel. Here, in a second article, he discusses effective fire safety strategies, and focuses on the importance of incorporating fire safety as early as possible in the initial design process. 

In a previous article (HEJ – June 2015) I wrote about effective fire safety strategies – stressing that they were no accident, and that they were entirely necessary if fire safety was to be successfully managed in our hospitals. Working in a number of hospitals, and networking widely with colleagues, I never cease to be amazed by the number of small fires we have in UK hospitals (as well as the relatively few highly publicised events), each with the potential to lead to highly destructive outcomes. This article develops the theme of effective fire safety strategies, and considers how fire safety must be incorporated into the initial design process. 

There are many factors to consider in keeping a hospital safe from fire: effective structural and other fire precautions; the limitation and control of flammable and combustible materials; detailed evacuation strategies; staff awareness of the fire hazards in the workplace, and the ability of a hospital to respond to a serious fire incident. However rarely, in my experience, are they appropriately (and collectively) considered at the earliest design stage.