OAR 411-348-0230: Emergency Plan and Safety Review

(1) EMERGENCY INFORMATION AND EMERGENCY PLANS. A program provider must ensure: (a) The in-residence caregiver maintains emergency information for each child placed in the Host Home according to OAR 411-348-0185; (b) Emergency telephone numbers are posted in an accessible location in the Host Home; (c) The in-residence caregiver maintains a written emergency plan for the protection of all children in the Host Home in the event of an emergency or disaster. (d) Children are provided with information about appropriate steps to take in an emergency, such as emergency contact telephone numbers, contacting police or fire personnel, or other strategies to obtain assistance. (2) EMERGENCY POLICIES AND PROCEDURES AND WRITTEN EMERGENCY PLAN. (a) A program provider must develop, maintain, update, and implement a written emergency plan that includes instructions for the in-residence caregiver, staff, and volunteers in the event of an emergency or disaster. The emergency plan must be available at the program provider's office and the Host Home setting. The program provider must also provide a copy to the CDDP. The emergency plan must: (A) Be practiced at least annually. The emergency plan practice may consist of a walk-through of the program provider's and in-residence caregiver’s responsibilities, or a discussion exercise dealing with a hypothetical event. (B) Consider the needs of the child receiving services and address all natural and human-caused events identified as a significant risk for the Host Home, such as a pandemic or an earthquake. (C) At the Host Home, include provisions and sufficient supplies, such as sanitation and food supplies, to shelter in place, when unable to relocate, for a minimum of three days under the following conditions: (i) Extended utility outage; (ii) No running water; (iii) Inability to replace food or supplies; and (iv) Alternate caregiver or staff is unable to provide respite or additional support and care. (D) Include provisions for evacuation and relocation that identifies: (i) The duties of the program provider, in-residence caregiver, and staff during evacuation, transporting, and housing of a child including instructions to notify the child's parent or guardian, the Department or designee, the CDDP services coordinator, and DHS-CW as applicable, of the plan to evacuate or the evacuation of the Host Home as soon as the emergency or disaster reasonably allows; (ii) The method and source of transportation; (iii) Planned relocation sites that are reasonably anticipated to meet the needs of the child; (iv) A method that provides a person unknown to the child the ability to identify each child by the child's name, and to identify the name of the child's supporting provider; and (v) A method for tracking and reporting to the Department or the Department's designee and the local CDDP, the physical location of each child in the Host Home until a different entity resumes responsibility for the child. (E) Address the needs of the child, including provisions to provide: (i) Immediate and continued access to medical treatment and other information necessary to obtain care, treatment, food, and fluids for the child, during and after an evacuation and relocation; (ii) Continued access to life sustaining pharmaceuticals, medical supplies, and equipment during and after an evacuation and relocation; (iii) Behavior support needs anticipated during an emergency; and (iv) Adequate supervision and supports needed to meet the life-sustaining and safety needs of the child. (b) A program provider must provide and document all training to in-residence caregivers and staff regarding their responsibilities for implementing the emergency plan. (c) A program provider must re-evaluate and revise the emergency plan at least annually or when there is a significant change in the Host Home. (3) EMERGENCY BACK-UP. A program provider must have a plan and assure for emergency back-up in the event the in-residence caregiver is unavailable. (a) The emergency back-up plan may include, but is not limited to, the use of an alternate Host Home setting or other licensed or certified provider home, additional staffing, and behavior support consultation. (b) A program provider must assure that in the event of the emergency absence of an in-residence caregiver, there is a written contingency plan for each child that is available for the staff and alternate caregivers. (4) MONTHLY SAFETY REVIEW. A documented safety review must be conducted monthly to ensure that each Host Home is free of hazards. The program provider must keep the monthly safety review reports for two years and must make them available upon request by the CDDP or the Department.