| (E) The maximum room temperature for food storage must
not exceed 85 degrees Fahrenheit at all times. The measurement must
be taken at the five-foot level.
(F) Food storage areas may be located apart from the
food preparation area as long as there is space adjacent to the kitchen
for necessary daily stores.
(8) Food services areas.
(A) Where a service area other than the kitchen is
used to dispense foods, this must be designated as a food service
area and must have equipment for maintaining required food temperatures
while serving.
(B) A separate food service area must have hand-washing
facilities as a part of the food service area. An employee toilet
must be provided.
(C) Finishes of all surfaces except ceilings must be
the same as those required for dietary kitchens.
(9) Other spaces.
(A) A bathing unit (tubs or showers) must be provided
at a minimum ratio of one per 15 residents. Toilets and sinks must
be provided at a minimum ratio of one per eight residents. Bathing
and toilet facilities must be of a type appropriate to the resident's
varying needs and disabilities and designed for privacy within the
bathroom.
(B) Adequate storage space must be provided for equipment,
carts, wheelchairs, etc., to eliminate the problem of such items being
left or stored in corridors, or overcrowding bedroom space.
(b) Small facilities.
(1) Bedrooms.
(A) A bedroom must be arranged and equipped for adequate
personal care and for comfort and privacy. A bedroom must have full
height walls that extend from floor to ceiling with doors. (Partial
partitions or furnishings are not a substitute.)
(B) A bedroom must provide at least 80 square feet
for a single occupancy (one resident) and 60 square feet per resident
for multiple occupancy. (Note: room configuration and usability are
taken into consideration and there may be instances where the minimum
square footage will not be acceptable.) The minimum room dimension
must be at least eight feet for a single resident room and at least
ten feet for a multiple-resident room, unless otherwise approved by
the HHSC. An exception is that a multi-occupancy bedroom for residents
in wheelchairs must have 70 square feet per resident.
(C) No more than four residents may be in any one bedroom.
An exception is that HHSC may grant a variance from the limit of four
residents per room only if a physician who is a member of the IDT
and who is a QIDP:
(i) certifies that each resident to be placed in a
bedroom accommodating more than four residents is so severely medically
impaired as to require direct and continuous monitoring during sleeping
hours; and
(ii) documents the reasons why accommodating in a room
of only four or fewer residents would not be medically feasible.
(D) In the bedrooms and for each resident there must
be a bed with a comfortable mattress and appropriate bedding, functional
furniture appropriate to residents' needs, and closet space providing
security for personal clothing and belongings. Closet space must provide
at least 24 inches of lineal hanging space per resident (in certain
cases, such as for infants, exceptions may be made). Married couples
may share a bed.
(E) Every bedroom must have at least one outside window
that can be readily opened from the inside and provides a clear opening
of at least 5.7 square feet (minimum width of 20 inches; minimum height
of 24 inches). The bottom of the opening must be not more than 44
inches above the floor. Minimum dimensions for operable window section
are 20 inches wide by 41.2 inches in height, or 24 inches in height
by 34.2 inches wide to provide the minimum 5.7 feet of opening. If
a bedroom has a second means of escape independent and remote from
the primary means of escape, the bedroom must have a window with clear
glass of area not less than 8 percent of the bedroom floor area. When
opened, the window must have an open space of not less than 4 percent
of the bedroom floor area.
(F) A bedroom door must be 20-minute fire rated or
1 3/4-inch solid bonded core wood. This door must have automatic closures
and latch in their frames. Exceptions are as follows.
(i) A bedroom door only needs to be smoke resistant
and does not need automatic closure if the building has an approved
sprinkler system throughout.
(ii) A bedroom door only needs to only be smoke resistant
with automatic closures if the facility is classified "prompt" level
of evacuation difficulty.
(G) Each small facility must have at least two remotely
located means of escape that do not involve windows. The arrangement
must be such that there is a primary means of escape from each sleeping
room that provides a path of travel to the outside without traversing
any corridor or other space exposed to unprotected vertical openings
or common living spaces, such as living rooms and kitchens. Exceptions
are as follows:
(i) A second means of escape or alternate protection
is not required:
(I) if the bedroom has a door leading directly to the
outside of the building, at or to grade level; or
(II) if the building is protected with an approved
sprinkler system meeting NFPA 13, NFPA 13R, or NFPA 13D.
(ii) Separated primary means of escape is not necessary
if the building is single story; has 1 3/4-inch solid bonded core
doors to bedrooms or smoke resistant doors with closures; 20-minute
fire protection for the structure; Class A or B interior finish; bedroom
windows of proper size; total smoke detection coverage of habitable
spaces, including loft areas that are tied into the manual fire alarm
system; and two remote means of escape.
(2) Living room space. Living room space must provide
at least 15 square feet per resident (with a minimum of 120 square
feet regardless of number of residents). Living room space can include
one or more rooms or areas provided that the first such area is at
least 80 square feet each.
(3) Dining space. Dining space must be large enough
to accommodate all residents at one sitting and must provide at least
15 square feet per resident. Living and dining space may be in one
room or area providing a combined total of 30 square feet per resident
(15 square feet living plus 15 square feet dining per resident).
(4) Bathrooms. Bathrooms must provide for individual
privacy. Water closets and lavatories must be provided at a minimum
ratio of one for each five residents. There must be at least one tub
or shower for each eight residents. At least one bathroom (with water
closets, lavatory, and tub or shower) must be provided on each sleeping
floor accessible to the residents of that floor.
(5) Kitchen. The facility must have a kitchen to meet
the general food service needs of the residents. It must include provisions
for the storage, refrigeration, preparation, and serving of food;
for dish and utensil cleaning; and for refuse storage and removal.
A mechanical dishwasher must be provided.
(6) Office. An office or other space must be available
for private individual counseling and for the safekeeping of files
and records.
(7) Stairs. Buildings of two or more stories require
at least two separate approved exit stairs from the upper floors.
Usable space under the stairs is not allowed unless fire separated
or protected in accordance with NFPA 101. Open interior stairways
which constitute an "unprotected vertical opening" to a required exit
passageway on the upper floor must be provided with a barrier (wall
and door) at either the lower or upper level to prevent the rapid
rise of fire or smoke originating on the lower level from rendering
the upstairs passageway to the second stair impassable.
(8) Fire rating. Interior wall and ceiling surfaces
must have, as the finished surface or a substrate or sheathing, a
fire resistance of not less than 20 minutes, similar to that provided
by 3/8-inch gypsum board.
|
| Source Note: The provisions of this §551.68 adopted to be effective July 1, 1996, 21 TexReg 5328; amended to be effective May 1, 1998, 23 TexReg 4060; amended to be effective May 1, 2004, 29 TexReg 3237; transferred effective May 1, 2019, as published in the Texas Register April 12, 2019, 44 TexReg 1883; amended to be effective February 24, 2022, 47 TexReg 787 |
