Archive for Regulations

DHHS Announces Final Rule Impacting All CMS Providers | National Emergency Preparedness

 

disaster victim

The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has just announced new requirements for national emergency preparedness, effective November 15th, 2016. After review, the DHHS determined that most healthcare facilities are not adequately prepared for the complexities that emerge with real life emergencies. This final rule will require all Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) providers to plan for a variety of disasters and modify their current emergency preparedness plans to comply with an updated list of requirements. The details of these new requirements establish standards for emergency preparedness based on proven best practices and documented results from real life emergencies such as 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the 2009 influenza epidemic. These requirements are designed to establish a comprehensive, consistent, flexible, and dynamic approach to standardizing emergency preparedness.

 

The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has identified four main elements essential to a comprehensive emergency preparedness framework. These include: Risk Assessment and Emergency Planning, Policies and Procedures, Communication Plan, and Staff Training and Testing. The following is a breakdown of the different components; understanding how these four areas impact emergency preparedness is imperative to developing a DHHS approved plan.

 

Risk Assessment and Emergency Planning

The final rule requires all assessments and emergency planning to take an “All-Hazards” approach to developing an emergency plan. This approach is specific to the unique situation, location, and vulnerabilities of different facilities, taking into account their location and the particular threats in the local area. The focus of this approach is capacities and capabilities to accommodate a wide range of different emergencies and disasters that threaten the individual facilities.

 

Types of emergencies to consider include:

  • Equipment failure
  • Power Failure
  • Communication Disruption
  • Cyber-attacks
  • Destruction of part, or all, of the facility
  • Disruption in supply of essentials

 

Policies and Procedures

Policies and procedures must be updated, and maintained, to support the emergency plan developed from the “All-Hazards” risk assessment. This means that in addition to completing a risk assessment and developing an emergency plan with consideration for the “All-Hazards” approach, the healthcare facilities policies and procedures must be designed to facilitate successful execution of the plan in the event of an emergency. This means that a comprehensive overhaul of current policies and procedures must be completed before the deadline of November 15th, 2016.

 

Communication Plan

The purpose of an emergency preparedness communication plan is to establish a system of communication between staff, physicians, and other necessary personnel in a timely manner. A successful communication plan ensures continuation of patient care and facility functioning while maintaining safety and efficiency. Identifying key personnel and developing a chain of communication ensures that in the event of an emergency, the healthcare facility continues to function as a whole and without disrupting patient care.

 

Staff Training and Testing

Appropriate training and testing is a necessity in emergency preparedness. As part of any emergency plan, all staff should be informed and prepared through adequate training. This can be confirmed through regular testing of staff, facilities, and equipment to identify any areas that need improving.

 

An effective training program must include initial training program of the newly developed emergency plan according to the “All-Hazards” risk assessment and must include all staff, new and old. To support this, annual trainings must be completed to complement the initial training and ensures maintaining staff knowledge of emergency planning, policies, and procedures. Additionally, facilities must also conduct regular drills and exercises to help identify gaps and areas for improvement.

 

In Conclusion

Ultimately, the final rule is designed to ensure that all CMS participating healthcare facilities, including hospitals, providers, and suppliers are adequately prepared for the unexpected. Drawing on historical evidence, and research that indicates many facilities are underprepared, the Department of Health and Human Services has outlined a new standard for emergency preparedness which takes effect on November 15th, 2016.

 

Make sure you are prepared, and learn how EoScene can help you maintain an effective emergency plan and facility management by calling 206-552-3449. We would be happy to review any of the key components of this final rule to make sure everyone is up to speed and prepared.

 

Link to CMS Final Rule: http://www.ashe.org/resources/pdfs/cms_rule_160908.pdf

Posted in: Regulations

OSHA Slips, Trips, & Falls | Where to stand

slip and fall sign

Floors are probably not something that you spend a lot of time pondering. They serve a purpose, provide solid ground and support, and are often overlooked as a functioning component of a facility. However, the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) is poised to finalize their Slip, Trips, & Falls Rules this August. We’ve been preparing for these changes, since the announcement of Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on May 18th, 2016 and here’s where we stand.

Not all floors are created equal, and OSHA requires you to pay attention. From food services areas to stairs, operation rooms, and parking garages, you’ll have to spend a little more time looking down. It is important to create a full walkway audit program, and not just a single survey, to accommodate for the variety of floors your healthcare facility encompasses. Even if the single survey qualifies as a check off towards accreditation. Proper preparation prevents poor performance, or in this case potential injury and litigation.

Everyone Is Part Of The Solution

Have multiple people conduct the audit. It is important to have multiple sets of eyes on your walkways. While you can hire a certified walkway auditor, and we always recommend bringing in the experts, they typically only visit annually. This leaves large gaps in time and increased risk for overlooking a potential hazard. We suggest having different people do walkway audits throughout the year. This raises awareness of slips, trips, and fall hazards. It also provides a different perspective on the state of your facility and provides continual feedback giving you the chance to take preventative measures.

How We Can Help

EoScene’s online compliance tool helps healthcare facilities take walkway audits to a new level. Scheduling walkway audits to various staff members, over the course of time is easy to do with EoScene’s platform. EoScene also makes it easy to report on problem areas, as well as corrective action taken, all from one dashboard.

 

Posted in: OSHA, Regulations