Preconstruction Risk Assessment

Is a preconstruction risk assessment required for every planned project? If not, how extensive must the construction project be before this is required? Does this apply to hospitals only, to ambulatory health care, or to other categories?

The preconstruction risk assessment requirement applies to the hospital, ambulatory, long term care, and behavioral health care accreditation programs. EPs 2 and 3 of Standard EC.02.06.05 provide guidance related to the preconstruction risk assessment. However, these EPs do not specify the scope of the project that requires this type of assessment.

The intent of the standard is to preserve the safety and comfort of patients during construction, demolition, and renovation projects. This includes preserving air quality, mitigating infection control risks, supporting comfort, limiting noise and vibration, and so on. The standard also ties in with Standard LS.01.02.01, which requires organizations to assess the need for interim life safety measures (ILSM) to preserve safety in case of fire.

To ensure that your organization meets the intent of Standards EC.02.06.05 and LS.01.02.01, it is prudent to conduct some sort of risk assessment prior to the start of any construction-related project. Patients in a health care facility are often especially susceptible to infection and sensitive to noise and vibration, so even a project that is perceived to be simple and straightforward may have unintended consequences. For example, changing out carpeting may seem like a relatively lowimpact project, but the dust and pathogens that can be released when removing old carpet and installing new might significantly affect some patients. Similarly, removing a wall near a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) may not require an extensive project plan, but the noise and vibrations and the potential release of dust and fungi spores generated by the effort could present serious health risks to the neonates located in the NICU.

While not every project will require the same degree of preconstruction risk assessment, a risk assessment of some sort is recommended. The 2010 Facilities Guideline Institute’s Guidelines for Design & Construction of Health Care Facilities (see EC.02.06.05, EP 1) provides additional guidance on this topic, in section 1.2-3.


From February 2012 EC News