Emergency Preparedness: Mitigation, Preparedness, Response and Recovery
- Candyce Slusher
- Jun 20, 2023
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 3
If you're running a home care agency in Texas, you already know that emergency preparedness isn’t just a good idea—it’s a requirement. Texas has strict regulations around it, including the need to activate your emergency plan (or do a drill) every single year.
If you’ve already done your drill or activated your plan this year, make sure it’s documented! If it’s not written down, it didn’t happen. If you haven’t done it yet, now’s the time to put a plan in place and follow through.
Texas has specific rules about what needs to be in your Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan (EPRP). If you’re in another state, check your local regulations—every state is different! But no matter where you are, a solid plan should cover these four key areas:
1. Mitigation: Identify the Risks
This is where you figure out what disasters could actually happen in your service area. What do you need to prepare for?
Weather-related disasters – Flooding, ice storms, excessive heat, hurricanes, snow
Health emergencies – Pandemics, epidemics
Environmental hazards – Industrial plants, hazardous material spills
A big part of mitigation is doing a Hazard Vulnerability Assessment to see what’s most likely to impact your area. If your emergency plan doesn’t include one, reach out to your local Emergency Management Service—they can provide this info.
2. Preparedness: Train Staff & Plan with Clients
Preparedness is all about making sure both your staff and your clients know what to do when disaster strikes.
Staff training – Your team should know how to prepare for emergencies at home AND what’s expected of them when an emergency affects your agency.
Client education – Make sure clients understand that your agency is NOT their emergency backup. You can help them create a plan, but they need their own support system in place.
If a client doesn’t have a backup plan during admission, make it a priority to go over it at the next supervisory visit. The goal is for everyone to have a solid emergency game plan before disaster hits.
3. Response: Taking Action
When an actual disaster happens, your Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan kicks in.
How will you communicate with staff and clients? Phone, email, text—what if power or internet is down?
What happens if your office is unusable? Do you have a backup location?
How do you track who’s affected? Who is safe, who needs help, and what are the next steps?
The response phase isn’t just about reacting—it’s about documenting everything:
✔ What happened?
✔ When did it start and end?
✔ How did it affect your clients and staff?
✔ Were there evacuations?
✔ Did clients have food, water, and a safe place to go?
Every agency’s response will be different based on the disaster, but the key is following your plan as closely as possible and adjusting as needed.
4. Recovery: Getting Back to Normal (or the New Normal)
Once the disaster is over, how do you get back on track? Recovery includes:
Reassessing business operations – How will things run after the emergency?
Evaluating client care needs – Are there lingering issues from the disaster?
Learning from the experience – What worked? What didn’t? How can you improve next time?
Document the good, the bad, and the ugly. Even if things went smoothly, there’s always something to tweak for next time!
Why You Should Run a Drill
If you’re a new agency, under new leadership, or have recently updated your Emergency Plan, a drill is a great way to test your plan.
A good drill should last at least a couple of hours
It should include ALL staff and ALL clients
If documented properly, it counts as annual Emergency Preparedness training for staff
Bottom line: Planning ahead and practicing now makes everything easier when a real emergency happens. Texas requires it, but honestly, it’s just smart business.
That keeps things casual while still covering everything in detail. Want to add anything else, like a checklist or quick-reference guide?
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