Situational Awareness Training

by | Oct 31, 2024 | Admin, Caring for the Caregiver, Clinical

by Lauren Rogers and Bobby McLain

Enhancing Safety Through Situational Awareness

For home-health, hospice, and social workers, maintaining safety in unpredictable environments is crucial. Situational awareness is a key tool in ensuring personal safety and effective response to potential threats. It involves four main characteristics: observation, orientation, decision, and action. Here’s a brief guide on how to apply these principles in your daily work.

Observation

For home-health, hospice, and social workers, maintaining safety in unpredictable environments is crucial. Situational awareness is a key tool in ensuring personal safety and effective response to potential threats. It involves four main characteristics: observation, orientation, decision, and action. Here’s a brief guide on how to apply these principles in your daily work.

Situational Awareness
Situational Awareness

Orientation

Orientation involves understanding and processing the information you’ve observed based on your own experience and knowledge. Think about what is around you—consider the layout of the environment and how it affects your safety. If you find yourself in a difficult situation, where will you seek help? Familiarize yourself with exit routes and safe locations within the home or area.

Decision

Once you’ve gathered and processed information, it’s time to make decisions. Weigh your options carefully to determine the best course of action. Consider what you can do within your capabilities to mitigate any risks. Your decisions should aim to ensure your safety while also maintaining the well-being of those you serve.

Situational Awareness
Situational Awareness

Action

Action is the final step, where you use all the information and decisions you’ve made to execute a plan for safety. If you’ve identified a potential danger, act quickly and decisively. This might involve leaving the situation, calling for help, or using safety tools and protocols designed for emergencies.

Situational Awareness Final Thoughts

Applying situational awareness can significantly enhance your safety and effectiveness as a home-health, hospice, or social worker. By mastering observation, orientation, decision, and action, you’ll be better equipped to navigate challenging situations and ensure a safer work environment. Stay alert, make informed decisions, and take proactive steps to protect yourself and those you serve.

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Lauren Rogers

Lauren Rogers serves as the Director of Healthcare at Katana Safety, where she leverages her experience to enhance workplace safety in healthcare environments. She focuses  on post-acute care providers and is dedicated to integrating innovative safety solutions that protect healthcare professionals.

She is passionate about creating safer environments, reducing risks for healthcare workers, and driving positive industry change. At Katana Safety, Lauren is committed to developing strategies that prioritize the well-being and safety of healthcare teams.

Bobby McLain

Bobby McLain is Chief Experience Officer for KATANA Safety, the Premier Provider of Lone and Workforce Safety Solutions.  McLain’s previous roles include interim marketing leadership for multiple companies and executive positions at ScanSource, Inc., working in the company’s global marketing and strategic expansion efforts. McLain’s career began in event management and marketing, supported by a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism with a focus on Advertising/PR from the University of South Carolina. He can be reached at bobby@katanasafety.com or 864-630-9016   KATANA Safety: Never A Lone Worker

©2024 by The Rowan Report, Peoria, AZ. All rights reserved. This article originally appeared in Healthcare at Home: The Rowan Report. One copy may be printed for personal use: further reproduction by permission only. editor@therowanreport.com

Product Review: Home Care Worker Safety

by | May 16, 2024 | Caring for the Caregiver, Clinical, Product Review

by Kristin Rowan, Editor

If you haven’t been following our recent reports, you may have missed last week’s article on the Home Care Worker Safety Bill that was passed in Connecticut. You may also have missed the article reporting that OSHA levied fines against Elara Caring, the home health agency where Joyce Grayson worked. If you did, take a minute to go back and read those updates. Changes are coming to home health and home care.

We’ve been reporting on these important updates as we believe new regulations on Home Care Worker Safety will be coming nationwide. If OSHA can penalize a home health agency for failing to protect the safety of an employee, then protecting the safety of an employee is required, by default.

Home Care Worker Safety Industry

We’ve been meeting with and researching about home care worker safety since the first article about Joyce Grayson. There are several on the market as stand-alone equipment and/or SaaS services. Many existing SaaS companies are adding GPS tracking, visit check-in/check-out, and other safety and risk items to their suite of services as well.

 

Background

AJ Leahy had a close friend who was attacked on a college campus. First responders were called, but they didn’t have his exact location. The extra time it took responders to reach him contributed to his death. AJ concluded that the current emergency system is dangerous and broken.  AJ didn’t want anyone else to have the same experience. Thus, he created POM (Peace of Mind) Safe Company.

AJ soon realized that the length of time it takes first responders to reach a victim is only part of the problem. He sought to create a system that would not only connect you with the help you need, but deter and de-escalate violence. After all, AJ surmised, the best outcome is not for first responders to reach you, but for first responders not being needed in the first place.

Home Care Worker Safety AJ Leahy
Home Care Worker Safety POM 3 Fob<br />

Home Care Worker Safety in the “POM” of Your Hand

POM safe is a portable, two-way communication safety device paired with an app that bypasses the need to use your phone to call 911. Using a series of taps, the POM Safe device can deter and de-escalate violence and dispatch the appropriate help.  The POM 3 (pictured left) is a wearable fob with a 10-day battery life between charges and is connected to your mobile data or WIFI connection through a cell phone. The POM Mobile (pictured below) device carries its own SIM card and remains independent of a cell phone.

Emergency Response

POM Safe has built-in, two-way communication that connects a home care worker to a dispatcher. Even if the clinician can’t speak, the dispatcher can hear the situation and deploy appropriate actions. When the two-way communication is activated, the device send a GPS signal along with profile information directly to the dispatcher. When needed, the dispatcher contacts emergency response services to arrive at the precise location.

Beyond Emergency Response

Reaction addresses the need for intervention after an act of violence has occurred. Proaction attempts to remove the need for the intervention at all. The proactive safety features of the POM Safe device include:

  • Fake phone call
    • Press a button on the device and your phone rings
    • Answering the call tells a would-be attacker that someone knows where you are and who you are with
  • Check on Me
    • Use the POM Safe device to start a timer
    • If you don’t confirm your safety within that time, help is alerted
  • Appointment Sync
    • POM Safe integrates with your scheduling and appointment data
    • Your precise location is sent to dispatchers and emergency responders
  • One-Tap Text
    • With one tap, a pre-written text is sent to alert dispatcher of your need for help
    • GPS location is sent with the text
Home Care Worker Safety POM Device
Home Care Worker Safety 360 Network

Home Care Worker Safety Network

One of the requirements in the Home Care Worker Safety Bill passed in Connecticut is to provide your clinicians with information about the neighborhood of each client. Crime rate, safety, registered offenders (coming soon), and other safety information about the neighborhood aid in the overall risk assessment of the client.

The POM mobile app includes the “360 Safety Network”, combining a crowdsourced alert system with third-party safety data. Your clinicians can also report additional safety concerns and receive real-time notifications if a new alert flags their location.

Customizable Programming

Each home health and home care agency will have their own protocols, emergency contacts, and preferences for home care worker safety. When you adopt the POM Safe system, devices are customized and programmed to your agency’s specifications. You can set the “Check on me” timer for shorter or longer visits. GPS settings can be turned off at custom set times so you’re not tracking your clinicians in their off hours. Your clinicians can add their own family members to their connections and you can allow them to custom set what each button-click type will do.

Organizational Monitoring

POM Safe links to a safety dashboard for the agency. At a glance, you can see all of your users, alerts, and appointments. It also includes a user message center, customizable user assignments, daily health check, and more.

Home Care Worker Safety App and Portal

Final Thoughts

Whether you contact POM Safe or another safety device company, it is imperative that you implement a safety program in your organization. This should include a committee, de-escalation training, self-protection training, employee assistance programs for mental health support, and a wearable/personal safety device that is GPS-enabled and connected to emergency response systems.

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Kristin Rowan, Editor
Kristin Rowan, Editor

Kristin Rowan has been working at Healthcare at Home: The Rowan Report since 2008. She has a master’s degree in business administration and marketing and runs Girard Marketing Group, a multi-faceted boutique marketing firm specializing in event planning, sales, and marketing strategy. She has recently taken on the role of Editor of The Rowan Report and will add her voice to current Home Care topics as well as marketing tips for home care agencies. Connect with Kristin directly kristin@girardmarketinggroup.com or www.girardmarketinggroup.com

©2024 by The Rowan Report, Peoria, AZ. All rights reserved. This article originally appeared in Healthcare at Home: The Rowan Report. One copy may be printed for personal use: further reproduction by permission only. editor@therowanreport.com

Connecticut Senate and House Pass Home Care Worker Safety Bill

by | May 10, 2024 | Admin, Caring for the Caregiver, Clinical, Regulatory

by Kristin Rowan, Editor

Last week, we reported on the proposed Bill in the Connecticut Senate and House to provide additional precautions for home care worker safety. In wake of the Elara Caring at Fault Joyce Grayson Home Care Worker Safety Joyce Grayson murder during a home health visit, leadership in Connecticut aimed to safeguard home health and home health aide workers and collect risk assessment data on the same.

On May 6, 2024, CT legislature passed bills in both the Senate and House of Representatives. Instead of the proposed bills that we reported on previously, both branches added amendments to previous bills. The bills include provisions for cyberattack readiness, child safety, and other items not related to care in the home.

First Stage of Home Care Worker Safety

Some of the provisions in the final bill are effective July 1, 2024. As we previously reported, hospice agencies are currently exempt from these provisions and the CT legislature will address hospice agencies in their next session.

On and after July 1, 2024

The Commissioner shall increase the fee payable to a home health care or home health aide agency that provides escorts for safety purposes to staff conducting a home visit to cover the costs of providing such escorts.

The Commission of Public Health will establish and administer a home care staff safety grant program to provide grants to home health and home health aide agencies for staff safety technology, including, but not limited to :

  1. A mobile application for staff to access safety information about a client
  2. A method for staff to communicate with either local police or other staff in the event of an emergency
  3. A global positioning system-enabled, wearable device that allows staff to contact local police
Effective July 1, 2024

The sum of one million dollars is appropriated to the Department of Public Health for the the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, to establish and administer the aforementioned grant program.

The Commissioner of Public Health and the Commission on Community Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention, will develop or find educational material about gun safety practices and provide such to primary care providers to give to patients who are 18 years of age or older.

Second Stage of Home Care Worker Safety

Some of the provisions in the final bill are effective October 1, 2024. Home health and home health aide agencies have five months to comply with these measures.

Effective October 1, 2024, home health and home health aide agency must collect and provide to assigned workers information about:

The client, including as applicable;

  1. psychiatric history
  2. history of violence
  3. history of substance use
  4. history of domestic abuse
  5. current infections, if any, and treatment received
  6. whether diagnoses or symptoms have remained stable over time
Home Care Worker Safety
Other persons present or anticipated to be present at the location of care including, if known to the agency:

  1. name and relationship to client
  2. psychiatric history
  3. history of violence or domestic abuse
  4. criminal record
  5. history of substance use

Location where employee will provide services including, if know to the agency:

  1. the crime rate for the municipality in which employee will provide services
  2. the presence of any hazardous materials, including, but not limited to used syringes
  3. the presence of firearms or other weapons
  4. the status and of the fire alarm system
  5. the presence of any safety hazards, including, but not limited to, electrical hazards
By October 1, 2024, each home health and home health aide agency must:

Provide staff training consistent with the health and safety training curriculum for home care workers, including but not limited to:

  1. Training to recognize hazards commonly encountered in home care workplaces
  2. Applying practical solutions to manage risks and improve safety

Conduct monthly safety assessments with each staff member and

Provide staff with a mechanism to perform safety checks, which may include, but need not be limited to:

  1. A mobile application that allows staff to access safety information about the client
  2. A means of communicating with local police or other staff in the event of an emergency
  3. A global positioning system-enabled, wearable device that allows staff to contact local police by pressing a button or through another mechanism
Effective October 1, 2024

Each home health and home health aide agency shall, in a manner prescribed by the Commissioner of Public Health:

  1. Report each instance of verbal abuse that is perceived as a threat or danger to the staff
  2. Report each instance of physical, sexual, or any other abuse by a client against a staff member

Third Stage of Home Care Worker Safety

No later than January 1, 2025

Beginning January 1, 2025 and annually therafter, the commissioner shall report to the joint standing committee:

  1. The number of reports of violence and abuse received
  2. The actions taken to ensure the safety of the staff member about whom the report was made
Effective January 1, 2025

Each individual health insurance policy shall provide coverage for escorts for the safety of home health care agency or home health aide agency staff

The joint standing committee of the General Assembly will convene a working group to study staff safety issues affecting home health and home health aide agencies, including but not limited to the following members:

  1. Three employees of a home health care or home health aide agency
  2. Two representatives of a home health care or home health aide agency
  3. One representative of a collective bargaining unit representing home health care or home health aide agency employees
  4. One representative of a mobile crisis response services provider
  5. One representative of an assertive community treatment team
  6. One representative of a police department; and
  7. One representative of an association of hospitals in the state

Implications

As we mentioned before, these regulations will become mandates across the country soon. OSHA has found the home care agency in Connecticut at fault for failing to implement safety procedures and precautions in the death of Joyce Grayson. The nurse’s family is suing the home health agency for wrongful death. Connecticut has established a protocol for safety measures, committees, reporting, and grant programs to implement immediate safety procedures across home health and home health aide agencies in the state. Before these provisions are passed on a national level, and before you have to tell the family of one of your staff that they aren’t coming home…

 

We urge you to:
  1. Create a safety committee within your agency
  2. Invest in training on de-escalation, workplace violence prevention, and self-defense
  3. Research and invest in a GPS-enabled emergency alert system for your staff. We recommend POM Safe and Katana Safety
  4. Insist on background information on all clients and others living in the home upon intake and BEFORE the first home visit
  5. Create a safe and comfortable way for your staff to report verbal abuse, violence, or uneasiness from any in-home visit
  6. Invest in escort and/or paired visits for high-risk clients, first-time clients, or any other situation that warrants it

We will continue to follow this story and provide updates as we receive them.

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Kristin Rowan, Editor
Kristin Rowan, Editor

Kristin Rowan has been working at Healthcare at Home: The Rowan Report since 2008. She has a master’s degree in business administration and marketing and runs Girard Marketing Group, a multi-faceted boutique marketing firm specializing in event planning, sales, and marketing strategy. She has recently taken on the role of Editor of The Rowan Report and will add her voice to current Home Care topics as well as marketing tips for home care agencies. Connect with Kristin directly kristin@girardmarketinggroup.com or www.girardmarketinggroup.com

©2024 by The Rowan Report, Peoria, AZ. All rights reserved. This article originally appeared in Healthcare at Home: The Rowan Report. One copy may be printed for personal use: further reproduction by permission only. editor@therowanreport.com