ASHE’s Leah Hummel Appointed Secretary of NFPA Health Care Section Codes and Standards Review Committee

CHICAGO — The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Health Care Section’s Executive Board has appointed Leah Hummel, AIA, CHFM, CHC, CHOP-B, SASHE, senior associate director of regulatory affairs at the American Society for Health Care Engineering (ASHE), to secretary of the NFPA Health Care Section Codes and Standards Review Committee.

NFPA’s Health Care Section is comprised of health care professionals from across the field — from fire safety officials and facilities engineers to long-term and acute care providers — who discuss and disseminate information on pressing issues facing health care to exchange ideas and solve problems, as well as discuss and review the latest NFPA codes and standards. The section’s Codes and Standards Review Committee (C&SRC) monitors the complete NFPA code revision process — from newly proposed codes and standards Notice of Intent through Certified Amending Motions — and evaluates their impact on the health care field. By tracking NFPA code developments, the committee works to identify any revisions that should be made to improve life safety or prevent undue burden in health care environments. The committee then educates the NFPA Health Care Section members on changes and provides feedback to the group during the code revision process in an effort to improve safety, practicality and cost-effectiveness for the field.

“Leah’s appointment to the Codes and Standards Review Committee will ensure ASHE has a direct voice in the development and revision of important NFPA codes that affect health care facilities,” says Chad Beebe, AIA, CHFM, CFPS, CBO, FASHE, ASHE’s deputy executive director. “Her deep knowledge and wide-ranging expertise on codes and standards will bring practical, field-based insight to the committee’s evaluation of proposed code changes. This work directly supports ASHE’s mission to advocate for safe, effective and operationally feasible codes and standards, and will help our members stay informed on and engaged in the national code development process.”

In the coming months, the C&SRC is expected to analyze changes to key NFPA documents, such as NFPA 99, Health Care Facilities Code, and NFPA 101®, Life Safety Code®. The committee is also expected to review codes and standards work on other critical facilities management topics, including emergency power, electrical systems and medical gas systems.

Hummel’s secretary appointment is a three-year term. She also serves on several NFPA technical committees, including the NFPA 101 Board and Care Facilities, NFPA 101A Alternative Approaches to Life Safety, NFPA 99 Fundamentals of Health Care Facilities and NFPA 99&99B Hyperbaric and Hypobaric committees.

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About ASHE
The American Society for Health Care Engineering (ASHE) is a professional membership group of the American Hospital Association. More than 12,000 members rely on ASHE as a critical source of professional development, information and advocacy, including representation on key issues that affect their work in the health care physical environment. For more information about ASHE, contact 312-422-3800 or visit ashe.org.

About the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
Founded in 1896, NFPA is a global, self-funded nonprofit organization devoted to eliminating death, injury, property and economic loss due to fire, electrical and related hazards. The association delivers information and knowledge through more than 300 consensus codes and standards, research, training, education, outreach and advocacy; and by partnering with others who share an interest in furthering the NFPA mission. For more information, visit nfpa.org.