Florida Administrative Code › 59 - AGENCY FOR HEALTH CARE ADMINISTRATION › 59A - Health Facility and Agency Licensing › Chapter 59A-18 - NURSE REGISTRIES STANDARDS AND LICENSING › Section 59A-18.018 - Emergency Management Plans

Current through Reg. 50, No. 138; July 16, 2024
(1) Pursuant
				to section 400.506(12),
				F.S., each nurse registry shall prepare and maintain a written comprehensive
				emergency management plan, in accordance with the Comprehensive Emergency
				Management Plan for Nurse Registries, AHCA Form 3110-1017, May 2015,
				incorporated by reference and available at
https://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-05234
.
				This document is available from the Agency for Health Care Administration at
http://ahca.myflorida.com/MCHQ/Emergency_Activities/index.shtml
.
				The plan shall describe how the nurse registry establishes and maintains an
				effective response to emergencies and disasters. The plan, once completed, will
				be sent electronically to the contact designated by the Department of Health as
				required in section 400.506(12),
				F.S.
(2) The nurse registry shall
				review its emergency management plan on an annual basis and make any
				substantive changes. Plans with any substantive changes will be forwarded for
				review to the entities identified in subsection (1).
(3) Changes in the telephone numbers of those
				administrative staff who are coordinating the nurse registry's emergency
				response must be reported to the county emergency management office and to the
				county health department. For nurse registries with multiple counties on their
				license, the changes must be reported to each county health department and each
				county emergency management office. The telephone numbers must include numbers
				where the coordinating staff can be contacted outside of the nurse registry's
				regular office hours. All nurse registries must report these changes, whether
				their plan has been previously reviewed or not, as defined in subsection
				(1).
(4) When a nurse registry goes
				through a change of ownership, the new owner shall review the registry's
				emergency management plan and make any substantive changes, including changes
				noted in subsection (3). Those nurse registries will need to report any
				substantive changes in their plans to the reviewing entity in subsection
				(1).
(5) In the event of an
				emergency, the nurse registry shall implement the nurse registry's emergency
				management plan pursuant to section
				400.506(12),
				F.S. Also, the registry must meet the following requirements:
(a) All administrative staff shall be
				informed of responsibilities for implementing the emergency management
				plan.
(b) If telephone service is
				not available during an emergency, the registry shall have a contingency plan
				to support communication, pursuant to section
				400.506(12)(f),
				F.S. A contingency plan may include cell phones, contact with a community based
				ham radio group, public announcements through radio or television stations,
				driving directly to the patient's home, and, in medical emergency situations,
				contact with police or emergency rescue services.