Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) The evacuation capacity of residents is a
function of both the ability of the residents to evacuate and the assistance
provided by staff. Determination of satisfactory ability to evacuate should be
made prior to admission to a residential program. Such a determination may be
reached by review of the applicant's history and a face-to-face interview which
shows a capacity to evacuate equivalent to that of the general public. When
uncertainty exists a time drill may be used for a more objective
measurement.
(b) Subsequent to
admission:
(1) For service enriched single
room occupancy and congregate programs, timed drills should be used to
regularly evaluate the level of evacuation capability of program residents.
Translation of drill times to evacuation capability may be determined as:
(i) three minutes or less, prompt;
(ii) over three minutes but not in excess of
13 minutes, slow.
Evacuation capability is based on the time of day or night
when evacuation of the facility would be the most difficult (i.e., sleeping
residents or fewer staff present). Residents needing assistance in evacuating
should be assisted by staff to the extent that assistance would be available at
the time of day or night in an actual emergency.
(2) For apartment programs, there shall be a
regular re-evaluation of the resident's capacity to self preserve, which shall
be documented by the program. Such reevaluation shall occur no less frequently
than yearly and should also occur when there is reason to suspect changes in
the resident's level of functioning.
(c) Fire exit drills shall be conducted in
congregate and service enriched single room occupancy settings at least monthly
at varying times of the day and night. Some drills may be announced in advance
to the residents. The drills shall involve the actual evacuation of all
residents to an assembly point as specified in the emergency plan and shall
provide residents with experience in exiting through all exits. Actual exiting
from windows shall not be necessary to meet the requirements of this section.
Opening the window and signaling for help shall be an acceptable alternative.
Records should indicate the time to evacuate, date and times of day, location
of simulated fire origin, the escape paths used and comments relating to
residents who did not evacuate within the required time.
(d) Residents and prospective residents shall
only reside in or be admitted to a type of residential program appropriate to
the individual's evacuation capability.
(1)
If a resident or prospective resident is clearly capable of prompt evacuation,
that individual may be admitted to or remain in any residential program of a
type appropriate to his or her functional level.
(2) If a resident or prospective resident
fails to demonstrate a capability for prompt evacuation during a fire drill,
the matter should be completely documented in the fire drill log and in the
resident's record. Immediate steps should be taken to relocate the resident to
a location within the residence which will allow for easier egress for such
time as is necessary until another fire drill can be conducted (no more than 14
days) and the resident's behavior observed again.
(3) If any resident or prospective resident
would be excluded from a residential program because of inability to evacuate
within the time limits above, an evaluation shall be conducted as described in
the most current recognized edition of the National Fire Protection Association
101A, Alternative Approaches to Life Safety. Said codes are published by the
National Fire Protection Association, One Batterymarch Park, Quincy, MA 02269
and are available for review at the Department of State, Division of
Administrative Rules, One Commerce Plaza, 99 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY
12231 and the Office of Mental Health, Bureau of Inspection and Certification,
44 Holland Avenue, Albany, NY 12229. If the resultant E-score yields an
evacuation difficulty level of prompt, the applicant or resident shall not be
excluded for failure to evacuate within the required time limit. If the
resultant E-score yields an evacuation difficulty level of slow, the applicant
or resident shall not be excluded solely for failure to evacuate within the
required time frame from a facility that is constructed to meet the slow
evacuator standards of the current recognized edition of the Life Safety
Code.
