Responder Safety and Health. Definition: The responder safety and health capability describes the ability of healthcare organizations to protect the safety and health of healthcare workers from a variety of hazards during emergencies and disasters. These includes processes to equip, train, and provide other resources needed to ensure healthcare workers at the highest risk for adverse exposure, illness, and injury, are adequately protected from all hazards during response and recovery operations.
Responder Safety and Health. Introduction The responder safety and health capability refers to the ability to protect public health responders by identifying safety and health risks; providing medical countermeasures or personal protective equipment; facilitating risk-specific training; and monitoring responder health. Implementing these activities enables health departments to ensure that public health responders are medically fit, appropriately trained, and monitored for potential adverse health effects, if needed.
Responder Safety and Health. Although the HPP FOA requires that all hospitals and HCCs participate in at least one regional or statewide exercise over the 5‐year grant period, an HCC must identify each year whether the HCC and its members have participated in an exercise or an event. The HCC is strongly encouraged to participate in a yearly exercise or event if the opportunity arises. If there was no event or exercise, it must score ‘No’ because of no opportunity (Score = 5). The HCC does not have to be the lead organizer, but the HCC must participate as an operational entity. Putting the pieces together Describe components of the HCC occupational safety and health plan. Identify points of contact for occupational safety and health described in the HCC occupational safety and health plan. Locate information on recent exercises in which the coalition or member HCOs participated. Evaluate the effectiveness of the HCC systems and processes to preserve healthcare system functions and to enhance support of all HCC member employees through tests and exercises.
Responder Safety and Health. Introduction Key Questions Does the HCC have a responder safety and occupational health plan to preserve healthcare system function and protect HCC member employees? Has the HCC designated a Safety Officer within the ICS for the local, regional, or State jurisdiction? How does the HCC continuously monitor responder safety and health resources, support and protections? Proper functioning of PPE and equipment? Awareness of on-site hazards? Oversight of decontamination? Documentation of all actions and injuries/illnesses? Emergency and psychological medical care? What processes are in place to ensure HCC member organizations have access to responder safety and health resources, support and protections? Has the HCC demonstrated the ability to maintain: Continuous monitoring of responder safety and health? Proper functioning of PPE and equipment? Awareness of on-site hazards? Oversight of decontamination? Documentation of all actions and injuries/illnesses? Emergency and psychological medical care? The responder safety and health capability describes the ability of healthcare organizations to protect the safety and health of healthcare workers from a variety of hazards during emergencies and disasters. This includes processes to equip, train, and provide other resources needed to ensure that healthcare workers at the highest risk for adverse exposure, illness, and injury, are adequately protected from all hazards during response and recovery operations. The goal is to assist healthcare organizations to ensure that no illnesses or injury occur to any first receiver, medical facility staff member, or other skilled support personnel as a result of preventable exposure to secondary trauma, chemical or radiological release, infectious disease, or physical and emotional stress after the initial incident or during decontamination and incident follow-up. To integrate this capability, public health and healthcare emergency planners should coordinate how best to address public health and healthcare worker safety needs during the development of strategically placed caches of equipment, supplies and pharmaceuticals that would provide timely resource assistance. This is specifically outlined in the functions of Capability 14 from the Healthcare Preparedness Capabilities and cross- referenced to the Public Health Preparedness Capability.
Responder Safety and Health. The HCC and its HCOs are expected to establish realistic, measureable, and time-specific resolutions to mitigate items identified as part of the corrective actions. All corrective actions must be assigned a targeted completion date To score a ‘Yes’ for this data element, the HCC must have fully completed the outstanding corrective actions from its formal AAR and any other "lessons learned" that were due to be completed during the reporting period, within the time frames and at the level of correction and completion, specified by the HCC. If there was no event or exercise, it must score ‘No’ because of no opportunity. Putting the pieces together Describe components of the HCC occupational safety and health plan. Identify points of contact for occupational safety and health described in the HCC occupational safety and health plan. Locate information on recent exercises in which the coalition or member HCOs participated. Healthcare Preparedness Pre-Incident Evaluate the effectiveness of the HCC systems and processes to preserve healthcare system functions and to enhance support of all HCC member employees through tests and exercises.
Responder Safety and Health
