Health Care Facilities: Protecting Your Name from the Top Down

If your facility needs to be a sterile environment, this is your enemy. Your roof is your first line of defense.

Just as patient care and practices change, so do facility safety and maintenance requirements. Today’s health care facilities are larger and more complex than ever before. Maintaining the roof and preventing leaks is vital to your operation and good name.

Just one drop of water through your roof can contaminate a whole floor or your entire facility.

Black mold and other bacteria need water to grow, spread and thrive. A leaky roof can bring contaminants on the outside of your facility to the inside. In addition to bacteria and other pathogens, roof surfaces often harbor bird droppings, fungal growth, oil, grease, fatty acids and chemicals.

Open or unsealed areas like this wall louver, allows water into the building envelope. Other roof problems aren’t so obvious and require diligent preventive maintenance. 

Implementing a preventive maintenance program.

There are four steps you should take to implement an effective roof maintenance program.

Step 1: Inspection

Conduct an in-depth roof inspection.

• Inspect roof edges, exterior & interior walls, projections, surface conditions and rooftop equipment

• Take core samples of existing roof assembly
  
• Evaluate drainage

Step 2: Evaluation

Prepare evaluation & baseline repairs proposal and gather information.

• • List repairs needed to bring the roof up to a maintainable condition, including prices for repairs
    
  • Gather historical data (warranty, type roof system & age)
    
  • Document previous roof activity (previous problems, roof traffic & repairs)

Step 3: Implementation

Following your acceptance of the proposal, repairs are started.

• All work performed by competent staff
  
• Manufacturer’s repair guidelines are strictly followed
  
• Develop a comprehensive budget for yearly maintenance expenses, yearly repair expenses and end of roof life replacement costs

Step 4: Follow-Up

Inspect your roofs at least two times per year and after any major weather events.

• • Inspect roof edges, exterior & interior walls, projections, surface conditions and rooftop equipment
    
  • Clear and clean drains, scuppers and drain lines
    
  • Remove debris and organic matter that may restrict drainage
    
  • Repair minor problems before they become major
    
  • Report in written form, activities completed, existing conditions and suggested actions
    

Special attention needs to be made around roof penetrations and rooftop equipment common at health care facilities.

459 Allied Dr. • Conway, S.C. 29526 • 843-347-2220 • Fax: 843-347-9719 www.spannroofing.com