Have you visited your Joint Commission FAQs lately? (How come you never call . . .)
Well, another week kicks into high gear, and once again, another Joint Commission FAQ is birthed into the world — this one for life safety.
If ever you wanted more information on the circumstances under which you would request a PFI extension from the Standards Interpretation Group (and perhaps presumably the only circumstances that would result in approval), you need look no further than this week’s FAQ offering.
And so the question becomes: What’s next? I imagine that there are still some unpublished queries from the field. I can’t help but think that providing vehicular impact protection for utility system components like bulk oxygen vessels or maybe even those pesky blanket warmers might be next on the FAQ list.
Recognizing that we just moved from the Year of the Rat to the Year of the Ox — might we really be staring into the gaping maw of the Year of the FAQ? Stay tuned!
About the Author: Steve MacArthur is a consultant for The Greeley Company, a division of HCPro. He brings 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 contributing editor for Briefings on Hospital Safety. Contact Steve at 
