Know the Code: 2026 Life Safety Program

Skip Gregory is a member of AIA and registered architect in Florida, who served for over 17 years as Bureau Chief in the Office of Plans and Construction in the state of Florida. As the Bureau Chief, he was the Authority Having Jurisdiction for design and construction issues related to all licensed healthcare facilities located in Florida. Presently he works as a health care code consultant and provides training seminars and presentations for health care professionals and associations. He is an outspoken advocate for resident directed care and household designs in nursing homes and patient centered care in hospitals. He serves on many national code committees and advocacy groups to humanize healthcare environments. He has been a member of the Healthcare Guidelines Revision Committee (HGRC) for over 25 years and is the 3rd recipient of the J. Armand Bugun Pioneer Award from the FGI Guidelines Revision Committee.

Mark Sidhom joined the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) in October 2019. Currently he serves as lead for ETrack (plan tracking system), TAB (time and billing) and associated system integration For the Office of Plans and Construction (OPC) within the Division of Health Quality Assurance (HQA). As Administrative Services Manager, he supervises the Plans and Construction office support staff, consults with the discipline supervisors and the Bureau Chief of Plans and Construction to resolve programmatic, administrative, and operational issues and problems, and Consults with the Bureau Chief in developing strategic goals. He has a degree in Mathematical Sciences with a background in Civil Engineering and Computer Programming.

Scott Waltz has a BA in Architecture and is a licensed architect in the State of Florida. He has worked for the Agency for Health Care Administration's Office of Plans and Construction (AHCA) for over 20 years. His first five years with the office were spent as an architectural reviewer with a team that covered the Big Bend area and Hillsborough County. In January 2011, he was promoted to the position of Architect Supervisor. In this role he supervised and monitored the work the office's architectural unit consisting of nine architects. Currently, he is the Bureau Chief of the Office of Plans and Construction and is now responsible for the work of over 30 architects and engineers in 4 offices statewide. As the Bureau Chief he develops and revises the codes, rules, and standards for the design and construction of hospitals, nursing homes, ambulatory surgery centers, and intermediate care facilities for the developmentally disabled in the state of Florida. He functions for AHCA as the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) over all health care construction in the state of Florida.

Clinton Slier is a Life Safety and Environment Specialist and has been with Integrity Health Care Systems since August of 2017. Clinton holds a Certified Healthcare Safety Professional (CHSP) certification from the International Board for Certification of Safety Managers, as well as a Certified Health Safety Professional for Health Care (CLSS-HC) certification from the NFPA. He provides clients in Florida, Texas, Indiana, and Tennessee with comprehensive Life Safety pre-surveys, along with continued support in interpreting and compliance with the regulatory rules, codes, and standards. His areas of focus include the NFPA 101 Life Safety Code, NFPA 99 Health Care Facilities Code, NFPA 25 and NFPA 13 for Sprinkler System standards, NFPA 110 for Emergency Power Systems, NFPA 70 for Electrical Codes, NFPA 72 for Fire Alarm Codes, NFPA 96 for Commercial Kitchen Standards, NFPA 80 and 105 for compliant Fire and Smoke Door inspections, NFPA 10 for Fire Extinguisher Standards, OSHA regulations, Emergency Preparedness documentation and preparation, and Water Systems Management and Legionella prevention program development. 

Eddie Alday has been with the Agency for Health Care Administration since December 2012. Currently, Eddie is the Bureau of Field Operations Life Safety Code Lead. He is responsible for providing oversight, instruction and development of quality assurance activities for the life safety code program within the Bureau of Field Operations. Eddie served 24 years in the US Army as a Combat Engineer; he has degrees in Business and Construction Management. Certifications: Florida Fire Safety Inspector I, II, Pro Board Fire Safety Inspector I. II, and International Code Fire Inspector II, Master Certification in Code Enforcement, Plans Reviewer, Building Official, ICC Building Inspector and NFPA 101 Life Safety Code Technical Committee Member.

John Altherr joined the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) in September 2013. Currently he serves as a Life Safety Code Lead within the Division of Health Quality Assurance. As the Agency’s Life Safety Code Lead, he is responsible for providing oversight, instruction and development of quality assurance activities for the Agency’s Life Safety Code Survey program. Prior to joining AHCA, Mr. Altherr was a General Manager with Northwest Airlines Inc., ground operations division and retired after 20-years of service. He has a degree in Business Management with a focus in aviation. Certifications include Florida Fire Inspector I, Pro Board Fire Safety Inspector, and Plans Reviewer.