Open, indoor water features could be prohibited in new healthcare facilities due to a proposed change for the 2014 edition of “Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals and Outpatient Facilities” from the Facilities Guidelines Institute (FGI).
In a recent article on its website, a spokesperson for the American Society of Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) says the organization would support such a change to the guidelines because “based on current research, the risks of water features outweigh any benefits.”
The article cites documented cases of disease and death related to waterborne pathogens, most notable of which is Legionella bacteria.
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