Title: Policy on Sustainability
Effective Date: / Reviewed : / Revised: /Function: Environment of Care
POLICY
The Facility Name must be prepared for a variety of disasters or emergency situations both natural and man-made. It must be determined what level of sustainability the hospital has including resources and assets.
PROCEDURE
The importance of how many hours of sustainability on supplies is crucial to determine if services can still be rendered during a disaster, and if so how long. The planning of the sustainability of Facility Name, without the support of the community within the first 96 hours, should be a coordinated effort of the Emergency Management Committee and the departments over the six critical areas before a disaster has occurred. It is not the case where you must have supplies and alternative means to sustain 96 hours, however you must identify your resources and assets, what means of alternative sources and with those what is the sustainability at that point. If you are unable to sustain near or around 96 hours, policies and procedures must be in place on the response that the hospital may conceivable do such as evacuation or temporarily close. The Form II: Inventory of Assets has identified those resources and assets and the sustainability indicated in hours.
The Facility Name Incident Commander will begin conversations with the Section Chiefs, local community and other healthcare organizations, at the 12th hour during the disaster (or at a point that a reasonably accurate assessment of the incident can be made), on the sustainability of the six critical areas. At this point, the disaster has a more defined means and projected outcome to the situation. Once the conversation of the sustainability has begun, it will be determined what the capabilities are available in house and outside the hospital. If at any point in these conversations, the abilities and resources are unavailable from the outside community and the sustainability of Facility Name is less than 96 hours, a determination on the evacuation of the hospital or closure of the hospital must commence, and a decision made of when that evacuation will begin so appropriate planning can be initiated for evacuation and to where.
EM.02.01.01 EP 3 Policy on Sustainability.doc6 Policy on Sustainability