Broward County Special Needs and Vulnerable Population Registries . . . They’re not just for hurricanes anymore! Mary A. Baewer, FPEM, MCP Emergency Management Specialist Broward County Emergency Management Division May 29, 2018

The Special Needs Registry Required by Florida Statute Cooperative effort between the Broward County Emergency Management Division (BEMD), Florida Health in Broward County (DOH-Broward), disability advocates and local health care providers

The Special Needs Registry (continued) Our program provides temporary emergency sheltering to adult residents of Broward County Three levels of shelter based on medical need: General Population Shelter (no pre-registration) Special Medical Needs Shelter (DOH-Broward) Higher Level of Care (boarded in a participating hospital)

The Special Needs Registry (continued) Residents enroll in the program via paper application available in English, Spanish and Creole a. Register online: http://www.broward.org/Hurricane/AtRisk/Pages/SpecialNeeds.aspx b. Contact Broward County Emergency Management at 954/831-3902 and request that an application be mailed to you

SPECIAL MEDICAL NEEDS SHELTER APPLICATION INFORMATION WE NEED: CONTACT INFORMATION MOBILITY RESTRICTIONS COMPLETE MEDICAL HISTORY STATEMENT OF AUTHORIZATION

Special Needs Shelter Kit Checklist Sent to all residents who are triaged to a special needs shelter. Developed by BEMD and DOH-Broward Comprehensive listing of items that the individual needs to bring with them to the shelter: Medications Bedding Personal hygiene items Medical equipment Etc.

The Special Needs Registry (continued) Your data is secure Data is maintained by Broward County Emergency Management staff on a secure server Your medical privacy is maintained

The Special Needs Registry (continued) Physician input/signature is no longer required Your medical information is also available to health care providers during an activation

Emergency Transportation Transportation to the emergency shelter is provided if requested. Based on the information you and your physician provided on your application If there is an emergency activation and shelters are opened, you will receive an automated phone call from Broward County Paratransit notifying you of the activation.

GENERAL POPULATION SHELTERS General population shelters are a LAST RESORT – they are not a RESORT. You have only 15-20 square feet of space per person. You must bring all items you need to stay in a shelter for as long as three days: Bedding Snacks Books, video games, music/ earphones Toiletries Clothing for three days Medications This is what a typical general population shelter looks like.

GENERAL POPULATION SHELTERS (cont’d.) PROHIBITED ITEMS AT SHELTERS: Alcoholic beverages Weapons of any kind No smoking in shelter No kiddy pools No aerobeds No cot larger than a twin size

What About Your Pet? If you have a pet, or had one in the past, you know how important they are. They’re a friend, a companion, and a member of the family that needs to be included in your emergency plan. Pets are not permitted in emergency shelters, nor are comfort animals. The only animals allowed in our shelters are service animals that meet the Federal definition of a service animal, either a dog or miniature horse.

What About Your Pet? (continued) Broward County has a general population pet-owner friendly shelter where the pets and their owners are sheltered, provided the pet owner’s medical and/or functional needs do not go beyond what the shelter staff can support. If you cannot stay in a general population shelter, make arrangements with your vet, or friends/family to watch over your pet during an emergency.

The Vulnerable Population Registry (VPR) Registry for Broward County residents that have a medical or functional vulnerability who choose to shelter in place High-priority mission for Broward County Commission, Broward Recovery Coalition and our disability advocates Used by Broward County municipalities as a planning tool; municipalities maintain their residents’ data

The VPR (continued) Addresses needs of vulnerable residents regardless of age 5. Registration: On-line at www.broward.org/atrisk By calling your municipality Calling the Broward County Call Center at 954/831-4000 or 311 Like the Special Needs Registry, your data is secure 7. Physician input is NOT required

The VPR Resident Registration Website

Best Practices: What we do to help you as the storm approaches Many residents do not pre-register for services. If you’ve waited, we can still help. Broward County Emergency Management “pre-activates” special staff to accommodate residents who choose to register in the days just before the hurricane’s arrival A special team of medical professionals works at the Broward County Emergency Operations Center and at Florida Health to review applications and assign residents to a shelter type

IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO REMEMBER! Don’t become complacent during long periods of time without a hurricane These are year-round, all-hazard programs that provide assistance for other types of emergencies other than hurricanes i.e. tornadoes, lengthy power outages, flooding, chemical spills.

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR SPECIAL NEEDS SHELTERING: Non-activation 954/831-3902 Activation 954/831-4000 OR 311 FOR THE VULNERABLE POPULATION REGISTRY: On-line at www.broward.org/atrisk Contact your municipality Contact the Broward County Call center at 954/831-4000