Healthcare Facilities Management Society of New Jersey, Inc.

Serving Healthcare Since 1949

*** General Membership Meeting***

Minutes to the Meeting of

May 18, 2006

President John DiGirolomo, CHFM, called the meeting to order on Thursday, May 18, 2006, at the Galloping Hill Inn, Union, New Jersey, commencing at 6:03 p.m. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Self-introductions were made by all in attendance. Bob Morrison acted as the Sergeant at Arms in the absence of Mike DiPadova.

TOPICS OF DISCUSSION

SPONSOR

The sponsors for this evening's event are Dolan & Traynor Plumbing Supplies in Wayne, New Jersey and Honeywell Co., building automation services.

EDUCATIONAL SESSION TOPIC

Mr. Bill Lohman, Mr. Jim Kokkalis and Mr. Frank Calter of the New Jersey Department of Health were our speakers for their evening. Their topic was general construction guidelines.

DINNER BREAK AT 7:02 P.M.

PRESIDENT'S REPORT

The Membership Survey is now complete and will be distributed at next month's meeting. Harry Segner, III, advised that as an added incentive to take the survey, one name would be selected at random from the survey participants. That person will receive a $100 gift certificate.

PRESIDENT-ELECT'S REPORT

This year our chapter had no new CHFM candidates. Our President has offered to host a one-day study seminar to assist our members in preparing and obtaining this valuable certification. Please e-mail Ben DiFranco, CHFM, if you are interested in this type of program. CHFM is an excellent means of career advancement within the healthcare facility management profession.

SECRETARY'S REPORT

Rick Ciullo requested that all Committee Chairs please submit their reports to him electronically at rdciullo@ashland.com.

TREASURER'S REPORT

Rob Thompson has submitted his resignation as Treasurer due to personal reasons. We accept his resignation, with regret, and thank him for his service and wish him well.

Pete Appelmann nominated Bill Anderson as Treasurer and the Motion was seconded and unanimously approved by the membership.

EDUCATION AND EVENTS CALENDAR

Ben DiFranco, CHFM, discussed June's guest speakers and sponsors.

ADVOCACY

James Corueil advised that there is a new Elevator Code, uniform key; 5201 key or get a lock box with all your keys in it. He further advised that JCAHO is looking to change the generator testing to a four-hour test as opposed to the current thirty-minute test run.

ASHE

A reminder was announced that the ASHE annual conference will be held July 9^th through the 12th in Boston, Massachusetts.

John DiGirolomo, CHFM, indicated that ASHE membership packages are available on the ASHE table located in front of the meeting hall. All members are encouraged to join ASHE.

MEMBERSHIP

A request was made for members to make every attempt to solicit for new members. There were three new candidates for membership:

1. Michelle Mitchell, Project Manager at Valley Health

2. Patricia Clark, Directory of Facility Development at Valley Health

3. Michael Fromat, Project Manager, BRMC

There was a motion to accept these candidates made by Bill Anderson. The motion was

seconded by George Thomas and the members unanimously approved.

President-Elect Ben DiFranco, CHFM, noted that attendance by our regular members has been sorely lacking this year. He pointed out that our society was founded by hospital engineers to provide them with a place to meet, share ideas and grow. We all have busy schedules including work, family and life commitments; however, membership is more than an annual dues check. Our society has flourished because of member participation. It is extremely important that all members attempt to attend monthly meetings and continue to support and help our organization grow.

We are currently having a “2 For 1 Promotion/Membership Drive”. Any vendor who is on the waiting list that gets two regular members to sign up for a two-year period each, will automatically be moved up the waiting list and receive a one-year free membership to HMFSNJ.

LOGO

The new graphic for the logo has been voted on and approved. Pins featuring the new logo will be available next month, June 2006.

WEBSITE

It was reported that the website is running properly.

LEVELS OF AFFILIATION

Our documents were submitted as required by ASHE. Our chapter was awarded the GOLDLEVEL Status for the 17^th consecutive year.

EAB

James Corueil discussed the proposed Hospital Bed Tax. NJHA reported that it forwarded over 10,000 faxes and letters to the legislators. As a compromise to the licensed bed tax, the State of New Jersey is now considering that the tax only be charged for either beds in use or staffed beds, whichever the case may be. The State is seeking to either raise funds or cut costs to equal 250 million dollars.

Fire Codes Advisory Board will meet on June 21, 2006, to make a decision to recommend adopting the 2006 Code with New Jersey amendments, or adopt the 2003 Code with New Jersey amendments. The Fire Codes Advisory Council is just that, an advisory board, and does not mean their actions are final. They have recommending authority.

DEP Commissioner, Lisa Jackson, has issued a drought watch for New Jersey.

GOLF COMMITTEE

Roger Ennis reported that the June 6, 2006, golf outing at Fox Hollow is sold out.

SOCIAL JUSTICE

Frank Keller advised that the next Bridges Run would be Saturday June 17^th, 2006, in Newark. Donations of non-perishable food and gently used clothes are greatly appreciated. Frank is also interested in any ideas that anyone may have for a social justice project for HMFSNJ.

AWARDS AND RECOGNITION COMMITTEE

George Thomas requested another nomination for this year's award inasmuch as he has only received nomination for one person. Anyone interested in nominating someone can find the application on the HFMSNJ website.

DOH UPDATES

John Schliewenz reported that there were no DOH updates at this time. He did mention that one of our members recently had a DOH inspection and the inspection team spent quite a bit of time on the psychiatric unit. They were looking at patient safety issues. One item cited w2as the use of a continuous door hinge on patient room doors as opposed to the conventional three hinge set. John also noted that the waiver review process is taking approximately two and a half months.

JCAHO UPDATES

For the purposes of Emergency Management Tracers, there is a change in the way the Joint Commission defines “large” hospitals. They will use the average daily census number. If your average daily patient census is over 100 patients, you are a “large” hospital.

Keith Snidker of the Pocono Medical Center told the experience of his recent survey. He commented on how the Life Safety Code specialist was much more thorough than previous surveys. He attributed this to the fact that they are our peers and are much more familiar with facility construction and maintenance. He mentioned that the surveyor was sympathetic to the issues at the facility. Continuous readiness is now the expectation of JCAHO.

EVENTS

In August HFMSNJ will be hosting a field trip to the Fire Suppression Training Labs at Chubb Laboratories. This will be a great opportunity for your facility and safety personnel to attend. The course provides a hands-on experience taught by Chubb Engineers. This event will take place during a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Lunch will be provided. Each participant will receive a certificate and CEU. The cost is $100 per person. If you are interested, please e-mail Ben DiFranco, CHFM at ben.difranco@ehmc.com. You can also visit the Chubb website for more information about Chubb Laboratories. (www.chubb.com)

Our All-Day Seminar will take place on Tuesday, September 12, 2006 at the Galloping Hill Inn. This year's topic will be The Electronic Statement of Conditions (a requirement in 2007) presented by Safety Management Services. The cost is $150.00 per person and includes breakfast and lunch. Please e-mail Ben DiFranco, CHFM, directly to reserve your seat. Six (6) vendors will sponsor the Seminar. Everyone is encouraged to visit all of the sponsors' displays at the seminar. Vendor contributions are what make programs like this possible.

Our Holiday gathering this year will be held on Friday, December 8, 2006. It should be noted that we would have a regular meeting on Thursday, November 16, 2006.