Gathering the Plan Elements What follows in the remainder of this chapter is an in-depth look at several categories (listed in alphabetical order) of items that should be factored into the agencies emergency plan. These areas include further information about required elements of the emergency plan as well as best-practices. Again, as the agency develops the emergency plan, it may be helpful to divide these areas of development up among the emergency planning committee. It is also recommend to consult the sample policies in Appendix A to find draft language. Business Continuity Business continuity or continuity of operations planning (COOP) is a vital part of agency preparedness and generally parallels the plan to continue patient care. Business continuity strategies focus on post incident business activities to ensure the agency is able to financially and operationally continue to provide services. The business continuity plan may contain documents, instructions, and procedures that enable the agency to respond to accidents, disasters, emergencies and/or threats without any stoppage or delays in key operations. Planning generally extends to finance, logistics, human resources and information technology (IT). Generally, business continuity implementation is one of the initial steps in the recovery process. Once an emergency situation becomes stable, business recovery takes over to ensure the agency remains financially viable. Examples of COOP planning include alternate office site identification, remote data backup, alternate communications, if phone service is affected, or billing and payroll capabilities if IT services are affected. Communication Establishing effective communication within and outside the agency is one of the greatest challenges in emergency preparedness and requires both creative and redundant means of channel communication flow to everyone involved. Internal Include a protocol to ensure that all relevant staff is rapidly notified in the event of a disaster. This requires 24-hour contact information to ensure the ability to rapidly contact staff to mobilize for duty. This communication plan should include: Agency Contact Information Plans for setting up an emergency communications center or point of contact A call-down list and alternate means of contacting staff (phone, e-mail, text blast, etc.)
Gathering the Plan Elements What follows in the remainder of this chapter is an in-depth look at several categories (listed in alphabetical order) of items that should be factored into the agencies emergency plan. These areas include further information about required elements of the emergency plan as well as best-practices. Again, as the agency develops the emergency plan, it may be helpful to divide these areas of development up among the emergency planning committee. It is also recommend to consult the sample policies in Appendix A to find draft language. Business Continuity Business continuity or continuity of operations planning (COOP) is a vital part of agency preparedness and generally parallels the plan to continue patient care. Business continuity strategies focus on post incident business activities to ensure the agency is able to financially and operationally continue to provide services. The business continuity plan may contain documents, instructions, and procedures that enable the agency to respond to accidents, disasters, emergencies and/or threats without any stoppage or delays in key operations. Planning generally extends to finance, logistics, human resources and information technology (IT). Generally, business continuity implementation is one of the initial steps in the recovery process. Once an emergency situation becomes stable, business recovery takes over to ensure the agency remains financially viable. Examples of COOP planning include alternate office site identification, remote data backup, alternate communications, if phone service is affected, or billing and payroll capabilities if IT services are affected. Communication Establishing effective communication within and outside the agency is one of the greatest challenges in emergency preparedness and requires both creative and redundant means of channel communication flow to everyone involved. Internal Include a protocol to ensure that all relevant staff is rapidly notified in the event of a disaster. This requires 24-hour contact information to ensure the ability to rapidly contact staff to mobilize for duty. This communication plan should include: Agency Contact Information Plans for setting up an emergency communications center or point of contact A call-down list and alternate means of contacting staff (phone, e-mail, text blast, etc.)
FINALHOME_HEALTH_EMERGENCY_PREPAREDNESS_PL_2FINAL_484106_7.docx