Accessible Outdoor Patient Care Zone

Patient examination room

• Route from the waiting areato the room should have minimum 900 mm wideclear passage.
• The entrance door should open to 900 and there should be a clear door width of 900mm.
• Space inside should be enough for turning of wheelchair, accessible hardware, accessible weighing scale to weigh a wheelchair,examination table that can lowered to 400mm to 500mm, accessible equipment, grab bars and positioning aids etc. A wheelchair turning space of 1500mm diameter is needed inside the room.
• Adequate clear space is required in the room for using patient lift equipment and for patient transfers. For that, an area of at least 750 mmX1250mm is needed along at least one side of an adjustable examination table.
• There should be, if possible, enough space on both sides of the examination table for easy transfer from any of the side that is convenient to the patient depending onhis handedness or disability. Alternative to this is to have two examination rooms with space on opposite sides. All controls like door handles and light switches etc. need to be accessible and operable with a closed fist.

Changing room

• Changing room should have accessible door with a clear door widthof 900mm.
• There should be a space of at least 1500mm x1500mm size for wheelchair turning inside the changing room.
• The seat should preferably be folding type.
• There should be a folding type horizontal grab bar on righthand side of the seat for changing clotheswith upper part of bar at 680mm and lower part at 480mm height from floor.
• The centre of back of the seat should be at a height of 800mm.
• The lower end of vertical grab bar on the left side wallshould be at a height of 750 mm from floor.
• There should be ahorizontal bar on the left wall at a height of 750 mm above the bench for changing clothes.
• Coat hooks and selveswherever needed these should be minimum 1000 mm and maximum 1200mm above floor. 

Diagnostic laboratory

• The laboratory should have enough space forall direction movements of wheelchair of a laboratory technician in a wheelchair and a patient in a wheelchair. This is required not only for easy access to any area of the laboratory by the technician but also for safety as he or she may require to move away from spilled harmful chemical, fire, explosion or any other hazard.
• There should be enough height of the work surface along with knee space under the surface for the person in wheelchair to work. For that the surface should be between750 to 850 mm above the floor surface.
• The depth of work station should besuch that sink, water tap, soap dispenser, gas control and electrical switches are within easy reach of a person sitting in a wheelchair. 
• For persons with low vision, the surfaces and controls should be in contrasting colours. The signage should be easily understandable. Any warning signal like fire alarm, smoke or gas alarm should be flashing for the persons with hearing disability and should be audible for personswith low vision.
• The patient’s chair or stool, if with fixed height, should be at the level of seat of a wheelchair otherwise they should have adjustable height for easy transfer.
• Accessibility of lab reports in soft copy should be ensured. 

Laboratory toilet

The entry should beaccessible with Inside clear door width of 900mm a clear space of 1800mm x 1800mm inside the toilet. The sink should be easily accessible.

Dressing room, plaster room and minor procedure room

• An accessible plaster room and minor procedure room need to have an accessible door.
• There should be a wheelchair turning space of 1500 mm X 1500mm
• Dressing/ Plaster table with height adjustment, reclining back, adjustable and removable foot and leg rest, adjustable and removable arm res
• The tables for dressing, plaster application or minor procedures should be with adjustable height from 400mm to 700 mmfrom floor surface.

Pharmacy

• The pharmacy counter should have an accessible path to approach.
• There should be enough leg space under the counter for a wheelchair user. For that depth of the counter from outside should be 480mm to 500mm.
• Height of the counter should not bemore than 1000mm.
• There should be good light at the counter so that a person with low vision can read the labels of medicines and other medical consumables.
• Clearly visible display of medical itemsis useful to persons with speech or auditory problems.
• E-prescriptions are to be in an accessible form. The hospital information system and e-pharmacy modules should be designed to produce the soft copies of e-prescriptions in accessible format.

Source : Ministry of Health & Family Welfare