Fire is a concern for everyone, but it is of special concern for behavioral health care organizations where clients stay overnight and
may be unable to move to safety by themselves. The Life Safety Code considers several options for fire protection, whether it be an
evacuation or defend-in-place strategy; for example, creating safe areas (smoke compartments) that allow people to remain in the
building; moving people to protected areas within the building; and, as a last resort, moving people out of the building. Behavioral
health care facility design and related features help prevent, detect, and suppress fires. The measures that behavioral health care
organizations must take to protect occupants from the dangers of fire constitute the content of this chapter. These standards focus on
the importance of a fire-safe environment and buildings; however, The Joint Commission recognizes that people are equally important
in reducing the risk of fire. The responsibilities of managing a safe environment (for example, identifying fire risks, conducting fire
drills, maintaining fire protection equipment) by those who work in the behavioral health care organization are addressed in the
“Environment of Care” (EC) chapter.