Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
During plan reviews and modifications, it is important to have thorough and
substantive representation from the disability and functional needs community
and from disability and functional needs service providers. Such representation
will assist in developing effective plans, may provide effective and efficient options
that may otherwise go unnoticed, and meets the nondiscrimination concept of self-
determination in developing integrative plans.
Other Considerations
Advanced planning is crucial to the success of congregate care shelter operations.
In addition to the day-to-day operational considerations discussed above, plans
should include provisions for transition and recovery. Such planning should include
a broad range of stakeholders and should identify staffing requirements for suc-
cessful transition and recovery. Transition and recovery provisions should be in
place before an event occurs and begin as soon as a shelter is opened. The primary
objective of shelter operations is to provide short-term care while finding long-term
solutions.
It is important to allow a reasonable amount of time and assistance to locate
suitable housing and services when individuals cannot return to their homes, and
every effort should be made to move residents back to the least restrictive environ-
ment. Planning considerations should include short- and long-term accessible hous-
ing, replacement of services such as personal assistant services, and ensuring that
individuals have necessary medical equipment and supplies.
To facilitate transition from a shelter to the community, plans should address
how local government will determine that the jurisdiction is safe to inhabit. In
addition, provisions should have provisions to assure that an individual's house is
safe to return to, ensure services have been restored to the area, and ensure that
accessible transportation is available.
Once all citizens have been successfully transitioned out of the shelter, the facil-
ity can be restored to its previous condition and the shelter can officially close. It
is important to perform an after-action review with shelter staff to capture les-
sons learned to improve plans, resources, and training to support future successful
operations.
ESF-6 Conceptual Framework
ESF-6 is a resource- and labor-intensive function requiring many different compe-
tencies. To achieve efficient and effective operations, it is important to identify a
conceptual framework that accommodates time-phased and scaled response. The
conceptual framework presented herein focuses on a large-scale event, but the con-
cepts can be scaled to meet any response need. Time-phased response refers to
the periods of time progressing forward from the actual emergency as shown in
Table 19.3.
