Practicing your emergency plan in advance helps everyone respond quickly and appropriately when an emergency situation arises. You won’t know if the plan works unless you try it out, so practice with all children and adults, including community partners. If you have enrolled children or staff with special health care needs or disabilities, address these specific needs with community partners during practice.
Regular emergency drills, both announced and unannounced, help everyone become familiar with emergency procedures and activities. This can reduce panic and fear during an actual emergency, freeing participants to focus on how to evacuate, shelter in place, or lockdown.
Emergency drills should be planned to include community partners, including first responders, and to ensure that procedures are accomplished in accordance with state regulations and HSPPS.
How to effectively practice your plan is discussed at greater length in Chapter 3.
Last Updated: October 17, 2022