Questions and Answers

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care

Date: 1/8/16

Division of Child Development and Early Education

NC Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 2

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care

Questions and Answers

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Topic

Page(s)

Already have an EPR Plan

Attendance Lists

Computer Challenges

Designated Person

Documentation

EPR in Child Care Training

8-9

FCCH - Orientation

Floor Plans

Lockdown Plans

Monitoring

NCID

NC Pre-K Program

Ready to Go Kit

16-17

Review of EPR Plan

Transportation

19-20

Water

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 3

Question and Answer

Already have an EPR Plan

Question: I am already required to have an EPR Plan for my corporation and it must meet their

specifications. Do I still have to create an EPR Plan on the template provided by the Division?

Answer: Yes. The Division of Child Development and Early Education has partnered with NC

Emergency Management to create a template that is standardized for all child care programs in

the state. Having a standardized format ensures all licensed programs have the information

needed to respond effectively in emergency situations. The template also ensures you meet all

the requirements of the Child Care Rules. It is likely much of the information in the your

corporate EPR Plan meets the EPR Plan required by Child Care Rule. You may copy and paste

information from your current plan into the applicable fields of the EPR Plan template. The

Child Care Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan is available on the NC Risk

Management Portal, https://rmp.nc.gov/portal/.

Child Care Rules: .0607(c); .1705(b)(7)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 4

Attendance Lists

Question: Some of the larger facilities use computerized sign in sheets. Do they need to have

paper copies of daily attendance sheets? Can they write into their plans that in the event of an

emergency, they will print out the attendance sheets? What if the power goes out and they can’t

print out their attendance sheets?

Answer: Even if programs have computerized attendance lists, each classroom should have a

paper with the list of children they are tracking. For example, in a child care program that uses a

computerized check in system, each teacher also has a clipboard with a document they use to

track when children come in the room and when they leave the room. As parents bring or pick up

children, the teachers check that they are present or mark them off the list. They use the list when

accounting for children whenever they leave the classroom to go to another area and when they

return. For example, they count the children when they line up to go outside, then again when

they come back inside. They make sure the number of children they count is the same number

that is on their clipboard list. These lists would be an acceptable way to track a child’s attendance

even if it were not the computerized list.

In an emergency, programs may not have time or the ability to print computerized attendance

lists. They could put in their Plan, if time allows, that they will print the attendance list, but the

teacher attendance lists would be the primary lists used to account for children.

Child Care Rule: .0607(d)(1)(A)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 5

Computer Challenges

Question: What if I do not have a computer or am not comfortable using a computer? Do I still

have to use the online EPR template to create my plan?

Answer: Yes, you do have to use the online EPR template to create your plan. The Child Care

Rules require programs to enter the program’s EPR Plan on a template provided by the Division

of Child Development and Early Education (DCDEE). DCDEE partnered with NC Emergency

Management to create the template online so that it could be standardized across the state and

across agencies.

If you do not have a computer, you may access the NC Risk Management Portal,

https://rmp.nc.gov/portal/, on a computer at the public library. Another option would be for you

to ask a friend, neighbor or relative if you can use their computer and if they can help you get

started.

Go to the DCDEE website for details about the EPR Plan Template and how to access it:

http://ncchildcare.nc.gov/providers/pv_emergency.asp. If you need assistance completing the

template, you can ask your EPR in Child Care Trainer, your Child Care Consultant or you can

contact the DCDEE. You may also send an email to [email protected]

Child Care Rules: .0607(c); .1705(b)(7)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 6

Designated Person

Question: Can the person designated to take the EPR in Child Care training be a preschool

coordinator or regional company representative?

Answer: The Child Care Rules state existing and new child care facilities must have one person

on staff who has completed the EPR in Child Care training. This is interpreted to mean the

person must be employed by the program and work on site. The trained person is also

responsible for ensuring the Plan is current and would review the EPR Plan with the other staff

in the program at orientation and annually.

Child Care Rules: .0607(b-f)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 7

Documentation

Question: Most of the EPR rules require providers to maintain documentation in individual

files. However rule .0607(f) allows them to either maintain documentation in individual files or

in a file designated for EPR Plan documents. Will the program be in violation of the rules if they

put all the EPR documents in a file designated for EPR Plan documents?

Answer: The intent of the rule was to maintain documentation. As long as the Child Care

Consultant can review the documentation upon request, the facility will not be in violation of the

rules. Facilities may keep the documentation in a central file designated for EPR Plan

documents.

Child Care Rules: .0607(b-g); .1701(d); .1705(b)(6)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 8

EPR in Child Care Training

Question 1: Why am I only getting in-service training credit for the EPR in Child Care training

while my friend in another county is getting CEU credit?

Answer: All EPR trainers can offer EPR in Child Care for in-service training credit/hours. To

offer continuing education units (CEUs) for the course, trainers and their agency must meet

specific eligibility and planning requirements. Some EPR trainers or their agencies do meet the

qualifications required to offer the course for CEUs. The training offers the same information.

If you are interested in getting CEUs for the EPR in Child Care training, check to see if it is

offered by the closest CCRR agency or in CCRRs in neighboring counties.

Question 2: I heard a program say they were going to wait until Spring 2017 to take the training

so they could delay meeting the new requirements.

Answer: The Division encourages providers to take the training as soon as classes are available.

If they wait until Spring 2017 they may not be able to get into a class. They may be cited a

violation if there were a reasonable number of opportunities to take the training prior to the

deadline and they did not take the opportunity.

Rule: .0607(b); .1705(b)(6)

Question 3: I have already completed an EPR in child care training. Do I have to take this one?

Do I have to take it again in a few years?

Answer: If you took an EPR in child care training prior to July 2015, then you must complete

the new EPR in Child Care training. The new training includes the EPR rules, how to complete

the EPR Plan template and how to conduct the shelter-in-place and lockdown drills.

You will not have to take the training again once this training has been completed.

If you are trained in EPR and leave the child care center, that center will have four months from

your last day of employment to have another person on staff trained in EPR. Once you have

completed the training, any child care center that hires you can list you as the staff person trained

in EPR. When you are listed as the staff trained in EPR, you assume the responsibility for being

familiar with the EPR Plan, reviewing/revising the Plan annually, and reviewing the Plan with

other staff members at orientation and annually.

Child Care Rules: .0607(b); .1704(b)(6)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 9

Question 4: What if participants cannot or do not return to the 2nd session or complete EPR

Plan within the allowed time frame? Do they have to start all over?

Answer: The trainer can only issue a certificate of completion or CEUs for the EPR in Child

Care training when the participant has attended both training sessions and completed the

assignment. Current programs must have one person on staff complete the training by July 1,

2017. New programs have one year from the date on the license to complete the training. If they

do not have one person complete the training by the applicable date, they may be cited out of

compliance with the Child Care Rules.

The person who completed the training from the child care center or family child care home is

responsible for completing the EPR Plan. The Child Care Consultant may cite a program out of

compliance if they have not completed the EPR Plan four months from the date they completed

the EPR in Child Care training. Completion of the EPR Plan is required by Rule, but not

required as part of the EPR in Child Care training.

Child Care Rules: .0607(b),(c); .1705(b)(6),(7)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 10

FCCH – Orientation

Question: In Child Care Rule .1705(b)(9) it requires FCCH operators to review the EPR Plan

with additional caregivers during orientation and on an annual basis. Are FCCH operators

required to have an orientation?

Answer: No, FCCH operators are not required to have an orientation. Child Care Rule .1701(d)

requires the operator to review all the rules and the EPR Plan with additional caregivers prior to

the individual assuming responsibility for children. Child Care Rule .1705(b)(9) states again that

the operator is required to conduct an initial review of the EPR Plan and an annual review with

additional caregivers. The intent was not to require an orientation.

Child Care Rules: .1701(d) and .1705(b)(9)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 11

Floor Plans

Question: Do the floor plans have to be posted?

Answer: The floor plan and evacuation diagram must be maintained on file and available for

review by the fire code official [NC Fire Code 2012, Chapter 4 404.2]. The evacuation

diagram must be part of your EPR Plan. You can access it in your Ready to Go File where

you have a copy of EPR Plan. While you are not required to post the floor plan or evacuation

diagram, the evacuation diagram serves to orient people when they need to evacuate the

building by either the primary or secondary route.

Child Care Rules: .0607(d)(7); .1705(b)(7)(G)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 12

Lockdown Procedures

Question: An ECE program is proceeding with lockdown due to a dangerous intruder on the

premises. After a teacher locks her classroom doors and windows, she reviews information to

account for all adults and children. She realizes her assistant teacher and a child were out of

the classroom due to a trip to the restroom down the hall from the classroom.

Should she open the classroom door to look for the missing child and teacher?

Answer: No. During a lockdown situation, classroom doors should not be opened for anyone

until emergency responders have communicated that it is safe to do so.

A review of the basic steps of lockdown is helpful:

The first step in lockdown is to use a known signal to let staff know an intruder is on the

premises and to then call 911. All doors and windows to the classroom are to be locked and

blinds drawn. Children are moved to the previously agreed location that protects them from

outside view, if possible.

Cell phones can be used to communicate information. Children and adults not accounted for

should be reported to emergency responders. The facility should remain in lockdown until staff

are notified by first responders that they may open the doors.

During staff training on lockdown it should be made clear that all classroom doors will be locked

when the signal is given. Staff who might find themselves outside a classroom should seek

shelter where they can be as safe and inconspicuous as possible.

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 13

Monitoring

Question 1: When do child care facilities have to start practicing the new quarterly drills

(shelter-in-place and/or lockdown)? When will licensing consultants start monitoring to see if

the drills are conducted?

Answer: DCDEE Child Care Consultants will monitor for records of lockdown or shelter-in-

place drills after a staff member has completed the EPR in Child Care training. The rationale is

that providers will receive the information on how to conduct the drills in the training.

Child Care Rule: .0604(f); .1720(a)(12)

Question 2: When will licensing consultants start monitoring for the Ready to Go Files at child

care facilities?

Answer: DCDEE will monitor for Ready to Go Files once a facility has completed the EPR Plan

or four months after a staff member has completed the EPR in Child Care training.

Child Care Rule: .0607 (d) (10); .1705(b) (7)(J)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 14

NCID

Question 1: When getting an NCID can I use the business account if I represent a corporation

that wants to put multiple EPR plans under one NCID?

Answer: At this time, you can only use the Individual Account.

Question 2: What happens if the person who completed the EPR template at our facility leaves?

If they used a personal NCID, how will we be able to get access to our EPR Plan?

Answer: Each EPR plan is registered to one user NCID. If the registered user is no longer going

to be administering the plan, the plan must be transferred to another user. The new EPR plan

administrator at the facility will need to know the old user’s email address and user name. They will

need to obtain an NCID.

Directions for transferring the plan to another user can be found on the DCDEE EPR webpage:

http://ncchildcare.nc.gov/providers/pv_emergency.asp.

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 15

NC Pre-K Programs

Question: Are NC Pre-K Programs that are part of a public school expected to follow the Child

Care Rules for Emergency Preparedness and Response or are they covered by their school

system plans? Do they need to submit an EPR Plan and send a representative to training?

Answer: Since NC Pre-K Programs are licensed child care facilities, they must meet the

requirements of the Child Care Rules pertaining to EPR. They can copy and paste applicable

information from the school’s plan into their own EPR Plan. To keep everyone in the school

informed, the NC Pre-K classroom should communicate with the school principal or appropriate

official about their EPR plan.

Child Care Rule: .0607(c)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 16

Ready to Go Kit

Question 1: Am I required to have a Ready to Go Kit?

Answer: Child Care Rule .0607(d)(4) requires programs to describe how children’s nutritional

and health needs will be met. Child Care Consultants will review the program’s EPR Plan to

determine if the program has a description of how the nutritional and health needs will be met. In

the EPR in Child Care training a Ready to Go Kit is recommended, but not required, to hold the

items needed to meet children’s nutritional and health needs. A checklist is available to assist

providers in determining the types of items to include in the Kit.

Child Care Rules: .0607(d)(4); .1705(b)(7)(D)

Question 2: Our shelter-in-place location is the bathroom. If we store our Ready to Go Kit in the

bathroom, will we be out of compliance with the Sanitation Requirements?

Answer: Yes, you would be out of compliance with the Sanitation Rules. The Sanitation Rules

require programs to limit storage in bathrooms to toileting and diapering supplies. You may store

the Ready to Go Kit somewhere else nearby, then bring it to the bathroom if an emergency

occurs requiring you to shelter-in-place. You also may want to work with your Child Care

Consultant or local emergency management office to find another location for sheltering-in-

place.

Sanitation Rule: .2817(a)

Question 3: How are child care facilities supposed to haul water or store water for everyone in

case of an emergency? They do not have anywhere to store that amount of water. Can they use

the water at the offsite locations instead of hauling as long as it is available?

Answer: The Child Care Rules .0607(d)(4) and .1705(b)(7)(D) require you to provide a

description of how you will meet the nutritional and health needs of the children in your care.

Consider the recommendations from the training, then discuss a realistic amount of water you

can store. Write that amount in your EPR Plan. Transportation of water is a consideration when

you have to evacuate off-site. When you plan for off-site evacuation, one option is to make

arrangements to store the water you will need at the offsite evacuation location(s). Another

option is to bring some water with you and store some at the off-site evacuation site. You can put

in your description that you plan to use the water available at the evacuation site.

Child Care Rules: .0607(d)(4); .1705(b)(7)(D)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 17

Ready to Go Kit

Question 4: Are we supposed to purchase expensive formula to have in our kit for it to

expire and have to be thrown away?

Answer: Child Care Rules .0607(d)(4) and .1705(b)(7)(D) require that you provide a

description of how you will meet the nutritional and health needs of the children in your care.

You are not required to purchase formula or any item. Review the recommendations in the

EPR in Child Care training and then determine what your program can realistically do. Think

about what you will need in an emergency situation to address the nutritional and health

needs of children. Then think about the ways you can obtain the items you need. For

example, people may be willing to donate items as a way to support your emergency

preparedness efforts. Describe in your EPR Plan what you will do to meet the nutritional and

health needs of the children in your care.

When you obtain items for your kit, you do not need to wait for the item to expire and then

throw it away. Before the expiration date, replace the item. You can then use the one before it

expires. For example, say the formula has an expiration date of May 23, 2016. On April 22,

2016, you replace the formula with one that has an expiration date of September 25, 2016.

You can then use the formula you took out of kit before it expires. An easy way to track

expiration dates is to check them during each time change.

Child Care Rules: .0607(d)(4); .1705(b)(7)(D)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 18

Review of EPR Plan

Question 1: Do I get in-service training credit for the annual review of the EPR Plan?

Answer: No, you do not get in-service training credit for participating in the review of the EPR

Plan. A review can be a training, but it does not constitute all the components of an approved

inservice training.

Child Care Rules: .0607(f) and .1705(b)(9)

Question 2: What is the difference between a review of the EPR Plan and being informed of the

EPR Plan?

Answer: According to Child Care Rule .0607(f), all staff in a center must receive a review of the

EPR Plan by the staff person trained in EPR in Child Care at orientation and annually. The

objective of a review is to ensure all staff are aware of the contents of the program’s EPR plan,

their roles and actions in the event of an emergency and the roles and actions of others. An

exception to this review is substitutes and volunteers counted in ratio. They must be informed of

the EPR Plan. Any program staff can inform them of the plan which means they tell them there

is an EPR Plan and the location of the EPR Plan. Program staff must maintain documentation of

both the review and the notice of the Plan and its location.

In Family Child Care Homes the EPR Plan must be reviewed with additional caregivers prior to

assuming responsibilities with children and annually. The additional caregiver should know the

contents of the Plan, their roles and actions they should take if an emergency occurs.

Child Care Rules: .0607(f)(g); .1701(d) and .1705(b)(9)

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 19

Transportation

Question 1: We do not have any public transportation in our county. Our child care centers do

not have vans or buses, except for one which has one van for school age kids. No one has a way

to transport off site other than to use personal cars. Also, we do not have car seats in any of our

centers! What are our options for transporting children in the event of an emergency?

Answer: You must include a description of how you will transport children if evacuation off-

site in needed. You must plan to transport children in compliance with laws governing child

restraints. You may use private vehicles to transport children.

Options for transportation:

If time allows, parents should be called to pick up children. This option would ensure child seat

restraints are available for all children.

Programs could consider working with a local transportation company, a school or church with

buses or cars in the event of an emergency. With this option most children would not have

access to child seat restraints. Programs can use this option only when the need to evacuate is

immediate or when emergency personnel acting in an official business capacity directs you to

evacuate immediately.

The program can plan to use staff and parent vehicles to transport children. The facility will need

to make arrangements with individuals to drive the cars during emergencies. Facilities should

have all contact numbers for the individuals who will operate the vehicles. A list of backup

vehicles and drivers should be ready in case the emergency makes the original drivers

unavailable. Any transportation option that does not include child seat restraints should only be

used if the need to evacuate is immediate and is recommended by a first responder acting in an

official business capacity.

Child Care Rules: 0607 (d)(2); .1705(b)(7)(B); .1720(a)(9) Requirements and

Recommendations for the Transportation of Children by Schools, Child Care Centers and Other

Organizations in North Carolina http://www.buckleupnc.org/resources/nc_cps_bus-van-

transportation.pdf

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 20

Transportation

Question 2: If the need arises that a Family Child Care Home has to evacuate, they have to put

all the children and supplies in their car. With one person it will be hard for this to happen in a

timely manner. Any suggestions?

Answer: Family Child Care Home (FCCH) operators should think through what will work best

for their situation. They may be able to store supplies in a container that is often referred to as

the Ready to Go Kit. They might store the supplies in a backpack they can put on and bring to the

car when they bring the children out. A container with wheels is another option. The operator

might easily wheel the container as they bring the children to the car. They can store the Ready

to Go Kit near the exit from the house or in the trunk of the car.

A FCCH operator will have the names and numbers of the individuals who will assist during

emergencies in the EPR Plan and he or she can call them to come help.

Operators may also ask local emergency personnel if they have recommendations.

Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care Questions and Answers January 2016 21

Water

Question: The recommendations say to plan for one gallon of water per person per day in an

emergency. I would need 224 gallons of water in my center, I have no room to store this. Any

suggestions?

Answer: The Child Care Rules .0607(d)(4) and .1705(b)(7)(D) require you to provide a

description of how you will meet the nutritional and health needs of the children in your care.

Consider the recommendations from the EPR in Child Care training, then describe in the EPR

Plan what your program plans to do to meet the nutritional and health needs of children in an

emergency situation. If realistically your program can only provide and store a certain amount of

water, then write in your plan the amount the program plans to provide and store. One option is

to store some water onsite and some water at the evacuation site. Another option may be to use

the water available at the evacuation site. For more guidance on water provisions and storage,

contact your Child Care Consultant, Child Care Health Consultant, or EPR in Child Care

Trainer.

Child Care Rules .0607(d)(4) and .1705(b)(7)(D)