The simple definition of a patient care facility is: “any place in a health care facility where patients are intended to be examined or treated” (Article 100). But understanding this correctly means being clear about what is meant by a health care facility.
We might say that a gym is a health care facility because exercise is a way to take care of your health. Your doctor might even suggest that you try a membership. But gyms have customers, not patients, and they are not in the business of providing medical tests or procedures. So a gym is not a health care facility.
While the above example tells us something obvious and few of us would classify a gym as a health care facility (and thus consider it a 517 facility), what about a psychiatric office? You would be a patient in that context, and any treatment would be considered treatment. But what if the office in question were in the doctor’s home? Would “facility” still apply? Many of these questions can arise at the boundaries of these terms. What about veterinarians’ offices? These facilities treat and examine patients. But the NEC refers to patients who are human beings (Section 517.1).
The good news is that you don’t have to get too deep into the meaning of the words. The guidance note goes on to list four categories of patient care spaces. These categories are not determined by the electrician, but by the facility owner (in response to a regulatory body). A similar approach is taken with hazardous locations. Just as it is outside your jurisdiction to determine the category of a hazardous location (Section 500), it is outside your jurisdiction to determine the category of a patient care space. It is helpful to be familiar with these categories, so here is a “short version” description of each:
Class 1. Equipment or system failure is likely to result in serious injury or death (to patients, staff, or visitors).
Class 2. Equipment or system failure is likely to result in minor injury (to patients, staff, or visitors).
Category 3. Equipment or system failure is likely to cause inconvenience (to patients, staff or visitors).
Category 4. Equipment or system failure is unlikely to result in a negative physical impact on patient care.
If the category is not specified in the job specifications or shop drawings and it is not clear to you that the area is used for patient care (for example, it is clear that an operating room is used for patient care), you can simply ask the doctor or nurse if a particular area is used for patient care. If so, it falls under Section 517.
