Staff Safety and Emergencies in the Home
Sets out how the Agency keeps patients and staff safe in the home: the home safety assessment, what staff do in each kind of emergency during a visit, how staff stay safe on visits and on the road, the workplace violence prevention committee, policy and plan that Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 331 requires while the Agency employs at least two registered nurses, how incidents of violence are handled, when visits may be stopped for safety, and how staff injuries and hazardous chemicals are managed.
About this policy
- Policy number
- TX-HSP-SAF-01
- Version
- 1.1
- Main rule
- 26 TAC §558.281
- Library
- Texas hospice · 59 policies
- Category
- Service delivery
- Sections
- 29
In short
- If you feel unsafe, do not go in, or leave. Then call your supervisor. You will never be in trouble for this.
- Check the safety flags before each visit, and check in and out with the office for flagged homes.
- For a symptom crisis or an expected death, call the hospice. Call 911 for fire, danger, or a medical emergency the patient wants treated.
- Ask for weapons to be put away and animals to be secured. Leave if they are not.
- Report every threat, injury or unsafe condition to your supervisor the same day.
- After violence or a threat at work, the Agency offers you medical care and support. You may report it to the police, and no one may punish you for reporting.
What's inside
29 sections. The full text comes with the One-time Policy Pack.
- Terms of Reference
- 1. Purpose
- 2. Scope
- 3. Definitions
- 4. Policy Statement (26 TAC §558.281(6)-(7))
- 5. Home Safety Assessment
- 6. Emergencies in the Home (26 TAC §558.281(6))
- 7. Staff Safety on Visits (26 TAC §558.281(7))
- 7.1 Before the visit
- 7.2 At the home
- 7.3 On the road
- 8. Workplace Violence Prevention
- 8.1 When Chapter 331 applies (Tex. Health & Safety Code §331.001(3)(A))
- 8.2 Workplace violence prevention committee (Tex. Health & Safety Code §331.002)
- 8.3 Workplace violence prevention policy (Tex. Health & Safety Code §331.003)
- 8.4 Workplace violence prevention plan (Tex. Health & Safety Code §331.004)
- 8.5 Responding to and investigating an incident (Tex. Health & Safety Code §331.004(b)(4) and §331.005)
- 8.6 Changing assignments after abuse or threats (Tex. Health & Safety Code §331.004(b)(8))
- 8.7 Annual review, report to the governing body, and copies of the plan (Tex. Health & Safety Code §331.004(d)-(e) and §331.006)
- 9. Stopping or Changing Visits for Safety
- 10. Staff Injuries and OSHA Reporting
- 11. Hazardous Chemicals
- 12. Responsibilities
- 13. Records and Compliance Monitoring
- 14. Staff Training
- 15. References
- 16. Related Policies and Forms
- 17. Approval
- 18. Revision History
An inspector may ask
- What do your staff do if they feel unsafe when they arrive at a home?
- Show me the home safety assessment for this patient.
See Cura Core with your agency's name on it.
Choose your state and type of agency, buy your Policy Pack online and get your sign-in by email. Already a customer? Sign in to your portal.