Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 9, May 7, 2024
Section 8.26.5.28 - EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANAs required by the federal Child and Family Services Improvement Act of 2006 and included in CYFD's federal child and family services plan, each agency shall develop and maintain a written emergency response plan. The plan shall be developed within three months of the promulgation of these regulations, or within three months of initial licensure.
A. Essential functions: The agency's plan must assure the agency, in the event of a wide-scale emergency, is capable of performing the following essential functions:(1) locating and ensuring the safety of children placed with families licensed by the agency and of those families;(2) locating and ensuring the safety of agency staff;(3) cooperating with, sharing information, and assisting PSD in providing emergency response as requested; and(4) ensuring continuity of operations, including maintaining records, continuing payments to providers, communicating with staff and foster care providers, and documenting costs of response efforts.B. Content of plan: The details of each agency's emergency response plan shall be developed by the agency based on its specific characteristics and needs, including the size of staff, the number of families and children served, the geographic location, office facilities and resources, and other factors. Although the details of each plan may vary, the plan shall include:(1) a safety plan for the office, including evacuation of staff and identification of an alternate location if the office is unavailable;(2) development of a staff registry, including emergency contact numbers and the identification of and contact information for at least two locations (including one out-of-town location) where staff would go in the event a community evacuation is necessary;(3) a call-back process to notify staff to report for work after hours;(4) identification of a lead person (incident commander) for emergency response and a liaison to coordinate with other response agencies in the community, including the PSD county office;(5) development of a foster and adoptive parent registry, including emergency contact numbers and the identification of and contact information for at least two locations (including one out-of-town location) where the foster or adoptive family would go in the event a community evacuation is necessary;(6) a call-in process for foster and adoptive families to report their location and condition and request assistance if necessary;(7) assistance to foster and adoptive families in developing their own family emergency plans;(8) a continuity of operations plan addressing how records will be safeguarded, communication will be maintained, activities and costs will be documented, payments will be made, and other business functions continued during and immediately after the emergency;(9) a plan to assist families and children to recover from the emergency, including reuniting families and children, providing psychosocial support, linking with resources, and other services as needed; and(10) a recovery plan to reestablish business as usual.C. Coordination of plans: The agency's plan shall be coordinated with the local county emergency operations plan. Assistance in the development of the plan may be available from the county government's emergency management personnel; if not it may be requested from PSD staff.D. Training and drills: All agency staff shall be trained in the emergency response plan and shall participate in regular drills and exercises. Staff shall also participate in county-wide, inter-agency drills and exercises as requested by local emergency management personnel.8.26.5.28 NMAC - N, 5/29/09; A, 8/15/11