PLANNING FOR INDIVIDUALS
WITH DISABILITIES AND
OTHER ACCESS AND
FUNCTIONAL NEEDS:
MASS CARE AND
SHELTERING
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This presentation was created by Nusura, Inc. for the
Orange County Sheriff’s Division of Emergency
Management
Facilitator Introductions
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June Kailes
Gary Gleason
Participant Introductions
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Name
Title
Agency/organization
Role during an emergency
Logistics
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Safety
Electronics
Breaks
Contact Info
Survey feedback
Agenda
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Key considerations and guiding principles
Shelter and mass care planning
Shelter operations
Transition and recovery
Key Considerations
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The needs of those with disabilities and other AFN
CANNOT wait to be identified and addressed once
an emergency or disaster occurs.
Guiding Principles
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Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA),
children and adults with disabilities are entitled to
equal opportunity to participate in programs,
services, and activities in the most integrated
setting.
Guiding Principles
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ADA mandates equal opportunity to
 Programs
 Services
 Activities
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Shelters must be architecturally AND
programmatically accessible
Guiding Principles
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The primary goal of sheltering and mass care is to
help people stay safe, healthy, and independent.
What is a Mass Care Facility?
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Facilities include pre-identified:
Shelters
 Non-traditional shelters
 Medical shelters
 Evacuation centers
 Disaster assistance and resource centers
 Mass feeding sites
 Point of Distribution Sites (PODS)
 Safe refuge sites
 Resettlement processing centers
 Decontamination sites
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Shelter Types
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Mass Care
 Serve
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the general population
Medical
 Provide
a heightened level of medical care for people
who are medically fragile
 House people who require the medical care that would
usually be provided by medical professionals in a
nursing home or hospital
Who Shelters Where
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Shelter people with disabilities and other access
and functional needs in mass care shelters.
 Most
people with disabilities and other access and
functional needs are not medically fragile
 ADA requires accommodation in most integrated setting
possible
Who Shelters Where
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How’s people in mass care shelters even if they’re
not accompanied by their personal care aide
 In
most instances, people who normally get help with
activities of daily living (eating, dressing, routine health
care, personal hygiene, etc.) can be housed in a mass
care shelter
 Local governments and shelter operators may not make
eligibility for mass care shelters dependent on a
person’s ability to bring his or her own personal care
attendant
 Consider using trained volunteers to help with these
tasks
Identifying Shelter & Mass Care Sites
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Federal and State laws require that children and
adults with disabilities have equal opportunity to
access emergency programs and services.
Without modifications, some shelters are not
appropriate to support the integration of those with
AFN.
With a few modifications and minimal expense,
some spaces can easily be made accessible.
Evaluating a Shelter Site
Shelters need accessible:
 Entrances
 Routes to all services/activity areas
 Routes within toilet rooms
 Passenger drop off and pick up areas
 Parking
 Sidewalks and walkways
 Shelter entrances, hallways, and corridors
 Check in/information areas
Evaluating a Shelter Site, continued
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Sleeping areas
Restrooms, showers, and toilet stalls, including
portable toilets
Public telephones
Drinking fountains
Eating areas
Medical first aid areas
Recreation areas
Selecting a Shelter Site
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State codes and standards must, at a minimum, meet
the Federal requirements, but can be more
comprehensive.
The ADA and other Federal laws, including the Stafford
Act, the Rehabilitation Act, the Fair Housing Act, and the
Architectural Barriers Act, provide affirmative
obligations and prohibitions of discrimination on the
basis of disability.
No State or local government, or its contractors, may,
by law, policy, or contract, provide services below those
standards without violating Federal law.
Equipping and Supplying a Shelter
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Shelter and Mass Care sites should be prepared to
provide or connect people to durable medical
equipment, medication, and other resources to help
people stay safe.
Support Services
The following are examples of types of services that
should be available in a general population shelter:
 Power generation
 Health service providers
 Communications providers
 Food service providers
 Transportation providers
 Durable medical equipment
 Consumable medical supplies
Staffing the Shelter
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Emergency managers and shelter planners should
integrate people with expertise regarding access
and functional support needs into the staffing plan.
Agencies in the stakeholder group are often a good
resource for providing shelter staff with
appropriate experience.
Assessment Teams
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FAST
Other assessment resources
Shelter Intake
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An individual request for an accommodation, based
on disability or other AFN, should be provided even
if not requested during the initial intake.
Dietary Considerations
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Plans should also include a process for responding
quickly to unanticipated dietary needs and
restrictions.
Food preparation techniques may need to be
adjusted (e.g., food may need to be pureed) to
meet resident needs.
Considerations for Service Animals
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Under the ADA, a service animal is one animal that
is individually trained to provide assistance to a
person with a disability.
Must be allowed in and provided appropriate
accommodation.
Animals may help with a non-visible disability.
Considerations for Service Animals,
continued
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If an animal is not immediately identifiable as a
service animal, shelter staff may ask only two
questions to determine if an animal is a service
animal:
1. “Is this a service animal required because of a
disability?”
2. “What work or tasks has the animal been
trained to perform?”
Communication Considerations
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The ADA states that “a public entity shall take
appropriate steps to ensure that communication with
applicants, participants, and members of the public
with disabilities are as effective as communication
with others.”
This applies to sheltering and mass care services.
Assistive Technology
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Assistive technology can help people with disabilities and
access and functional needs communicate
iPads –apps can provide enlarged text , picture, immediate
access to interpreters and translation
Magnifying Readers – Enlarges text for people with low
vision
Enhanced Listening Devices – improves the clarity of sound
Live Video Interpreting – provides immediate access to sign
language interpreters standing by at a remote location
Captioned Phones – provide real-time voice-to-text for
people who can speak on the phone but cannot hear the
caller on the other end
Quiet Area
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The stress that is created during and after an
emergency or disaster is increased as a result of the
noise and crowded conditions of a shelter.
Plans should include a strategy for providing a
quiet area within each general population shelter.
Quiet areas must be accessible.
Other support services
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Mental Health Care
Medical Care
Recovery services
Victims advocacy (if event was crime related)
Transit and transportation
Day care
Key Considerations For
Transition and Recovery
Transitioning Back to the Community
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In order for children and adults who have access or
functional needs to transition back to their
community, it is important to provide them a
reasonable amount of time and assistance to locate
suitable housing when they cannot return to their
former homes.
Questions?
Discussion Questions
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Are there any situations where it is legal and
appropriate to set up a separate AFN shelter?
Some OC city plans call for them.
Is there a difference between an official or
sanctioned shelter site and an improvisational site?
How does the law apply?
Discussion Questions
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OC is linguistically diverse. What are strategies for
communicating when translators may not be
available?
How will people know about shelter sites in major
events when power and traditional media are
down?
Share your thoughts!
Thank You!
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you leave