Policy Manual sample

MDT Home Health Care Agency, Inc. (iii) Analyze the HHA’s response to and maintain documentation of all drills, tabletop exercises, and emergency events, and revise the HHA’s emergency plan, as needed. (e) Integrated healthcare systems . If our HHA become part of a healthcare system consisting of multiple separately certified healthcare facilities that elects to have a unified and integrated emergency preparedness program, our HHA may choose to participate in the healthcare system’s coordinated emergency preparedness program. If elected, the unified and integrated emergency preparedness program must do all of the following: (1) Demonstrate that each separately certified facility within the system actively participated in the development of the unified and integrated emergency preparedness program. (2) Be developed and maintained in a manner that takes into account each separately certified facility’s unique circumstances, patient populations, and services offered. (3) Demonstrate that each separately certified facility is capable of actively using the unified and integrated emergency preparedness program and is in compliance with the program. (4) Include a unified and integrated emergency plan that meets the requirements of paragraphs (a)(2), (3), and (4) of this section. The unified and integrated emergency plan must also be based on and include all of the following: (i) A documented community - based risk assessment, utilizing an all - hazards approach. (ii) A documented individual facility based risk assessment for each separately certified facility within the health system, utilizing an all - hazards approach. (5) Include integrated policies and procedures that meet the requirements set forth in paragraph (b) of this section, a coordinated communication plan and training and testing programs that meet the requirements of paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section, respectively. If the telephone service is not available during an emergency, our agency shall have a contingency plan to support communication, which include cell phones, two way communication radios, contact with a community based ham radio group, public announcements through radio or television stations, driving directly to the employee’s or the patient’s home, and, in medical emergency situations, contact with police or emergency rescue services. PROCEDURES: C On admission, our agency shall inform patients and patient’s caregivers of the agency’s procedures during and immediately following an emergency and inform patients of the special needs registry maintained by the county Emergency Management office. Our agency shall document in the patient’s file if the patient plans to evacuate or remain home, if during emergency the patient’s caregiver can take responsibility for services normally provided by the agency. C Upon eminent threat of an emergency or disaster our agency will contact those patients needing ongoing services (in the patient’s place of residence), and confirm each patient’s plan during and immediately following an emergency. C Our agency shall collect registration information for special needs patients who will need continuing care or services during a disaster or emergency. This registration information shall be submitted, when collected, to the county Emergency Management office, or on a periodic basis as determined by the agency’s county Emergency Management office. C Our staff shall educate patients registered with the special needs registry that special needs shelter are an option of last resort and that services will not be equal to what they have received in their homes. C The prioritized list of registered special needs patients maintained by our agency shall be Home Health Agency Policies A-64