Fire Risk Assessments for Nursing Homes: Meeting Regulation 28

Fire safety in a nursing home is judged against a specific regulation, and the stakes are high because many residents cannot leave the building without help. A fire risk assessment shows where your home stands against that regulation and what to fix first.

What Regulation 28 requires

Regulation 28 of the Health Act 2007 (Care and Welfare of Residents in Designated Centres for Older People) Regulations 2013 deals with fire precautions. In summary, the registered provider must:

• take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, with suitable firefighting equipment, building services, bedding and furnishings
• provide adequate means of escape, including emergency lighting
• maintain fire equipment, means of escape and the building fabric, and review fire precautions
• make sure staff are trained in fire prevention, emergency procedures, the layout of the building, escape routes, the location of alarm call points and firefighting equipment
• use fire drills and practices so that staff, and residents as far as is reasonably practicable, know what to do
• have adequate arrangements for detecting, containing and extinguishing fires, giving warning, calling the fire service and evacuating residents safely

The person in charge must also display the fire procedures in a prominent place. Alongside this, section 18(2) of the Fire Services Acts 1981 and 2003 applies to nursing homes as it does to other premises.

Why care settings are different

• Many residents need one or two staff to help them move.
• Night staffing is lower, and that is when a fire is hardest to manage.
• Evacuation is usually progressive: residents move through fire doors to a safer part of the building first, not straight outside.
• That makes fire doors and the fire-resisting walls between compartments critical.

What the fire risk assessment looks at

1. Compartments and fire doors: whether doors close fully, and whether walls and ceilings are sealed where pipes and cables pass through.
2. Evacuation at night: whether the staff on duty could move the residents in the largest compartment in time.
3. Residents’ individual needs: evacuation plans for each resident and the equipment to carry them out.
4. Detection and alarm: coverage and how staff are alerted.
5. Higher-risk rooms: kitchen, laundry, plant, stores and oxygen storage.
6. Bedding and furnishings.
7. Training and drills: including drills that simulate night-time staffing.
8. Records: servicing, tests, training and drill reports.

Preparing for inspection

HIQA inspects nursing homes against the regulations and publishes a fire safety handbook for providers and staff. An inspector will want to see that risks have been identified, that actions have dates and owners, and that drills are realistic. A current fire risk assessment with a tracked action plan gives you that.

Safer Solutions carries out fire risk assessments and legionella risk assessments for nursing homes across Ireland, and can cover both in one visit. Call 086 275 9728, email info@safersolutions.ie or request a quote.