Despite the known threat of hurricanes, year after year, Florida residents are plagued with horror stories about nursing homes and assisted living facilities that fail to uphold their end of the bargain and adequately protect their residents. When a facility fails to prepare for a known threat, the outcomes can be devastating.
Take, for example, the tragedy at Hollywood Hills. In 2017, after Hurricane Irma swept through Florida, the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills lost power to its air conditioning system. Over the next few days, the heat inside the facility became unbearable. Despite the staff’s awareness of the rising temperatures, nothing was done to evacuate or relocate the residents to safety. Tragically, 12 elderly residents died from heat-related conditions, and countless others suffered. This disaster was not just a failure of the facility’s infrastructure—it was a failure of responsibility, preparation, and care.
The Hollywood Hills case serves as a grim reminder of the dire consequences when nursing homes and assisted living facilities are ill-prepared for hurricane season. And it wasn’t an isolated incident. Each year reports surface of facilities failing to evacuate residents promptly, failing to maintain adequate power for medical equipment, and even failing to communicate effectively with families during these emergencies.
What Must Be Done at a Facility Level?
1. Comprehensive Emergency Management Plans (CEMPs)
Florida nursing homes and assisted living facilities are required by law to have comprehensive emergency management plans, but too often, these plans exist only on paper and not in practice. Facilities must have detailed evacuation plans that account for transportation, safe relocation sites, and sufficient staff to handle the complexities of moving elderly and disabled residents.
To learn more about CEMPs, visit the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration’s website:
2. Backup Power Requirements for Florida Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities
Florida law mandates that facilities maintain backup generators capable of powering air conditioning at 81 degrees or cooler for at least 96 hours during a power outage. These generators should also be able to support critical medical equipment like ventilators and oxygen systems. Facilities must ensure these generators are tested regularly and comply with state requirements. Families should proactively ask for proof of compliance and transparency about these capabilities to avoid preventable tragedies.
3. Effective Communication with Families
Clear and consistent communication during emergencies is essential. Families should not be left in the dark when a nursing home or assisted living facility is affected by a hurricane or needs to evacuate. Facilities must have communication protocols that notify families about the location of their loved ones, their condition and care during the emergency, and any changes to their evacuation plan or the facility’s power situation.
4. Staffing During Emergencies
Adequate staffing during an emergency is critical. Too often, understaffed facilities struggle to provide basic care during high-stress situations, leading to neglect and, in worst cases, death. Facilities must ensure that there are enough trained professionals on hand during evacuations, medical personnel are available to administer critical care, and staffing plans are robust enough to handle prolonged emergencies, even if they come at a higher cost.
What Can You Do?
As a family member, it’s important to stay informed and involved in your loved one’s care. If you have a loved one residing in a facility that is in the path of a hurricane, make sure you not only understand the plan but are also comfortable with the plan. Make sure the facility has your most current contact information. Confirm that the facility has tested its backup power capabilities. Ask questions about evacuation procedures, including where your loved one will go and whether there will be sufficient staff at the evacuation site to provide the necessary care and treatment. Inquire about alternate ways to reach your loved one, including evacuation site telephone numbers and staff cellphone numbers. If possible, have a contingency plan in place for your loved one. In some cases, it might be safer to relocate your loved one to your home or the home of a trusted family member before a hurricane hits.
Accountability for Negligence
Because hurricanes are a known fact of life in Florida, it is simply unacceptable for facilities to be unprepared, and even more egregious for them to neglect the basic care and safety of their residents.
At FIDJ, we hold nursing homes and assisted living facilities accountable when they are unprepared for hurricanes. If you or your loved one was injured at the hands of a nursing home or assisted living facility, don’t delay. Contact FIDJ.
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