Trash Chute Door6526345
Wow… What a scary website to see. Trash bags caught in the trash chute in such a way that it prevents the chute doors from automatically closing. And make no error about it, the trash chute doors are needed to close and latch, automatically.
Section 19.5.four.three of the 2000 edition of the Life Security Code requires trash chutes to discharge into trash collection rooms and the trash collection rooms can't be utilized for any other objective. So, that means you can't shop items that are not related to the trash chute in the space, such as floor scrubber machines.
The scene in the picture is generally caused by the failure to empty the cart in time, before it fills up to the point exactly where the bags of trash prevent the chute doors from closing. In today’s economy, it is not all that uncommon to learn that staff reductions in the Environmental Solutions (housekeeping) department prevent adequate staffing to remove the trash bags. While this might be a reputable reason, somebody at this hospital forgot the importance of removing the trash on a normal basis. They require to make this a priority.
From a life safety point of view, it would be better to eliminate the cart and allow the bags to fall onto the floor. This way it would take a lot much more bags of trash to pile up before it would obstruct the chute door from closing. I’m not sure what the hospital’s Infection Control expert would say about that, but I would suggest it as an option if the ES department cannot empty the cart frequently enough.
If you decide to allow the bags of trash to accumulate on the floor in the trash chute discharge space, I suggest you conduct a danger assessment to analyze the risks to patient security. This way, you can demonstrate to a surveyor that the risks were considered if the surveyor has a problem with bags o’ trash scattered on the floor.
