Emergency preparedness plans often look solid on paper. Drills may run smoothly, staff check the right boxes, and survey binders stay neatly updated. But when a real emergency strikes, facilities often discover gaps they never considered.
That’s because actual emergencies don’t follow a script. They stretch logistics, stress staff, and reveal weaknesses that drills can’t always uncover. Surveyors know this, which is why they often look beyond the obvious when evaluating your readiness.
Here are five preparedness gaps that facilities miss most often—and how to close them before surveyors or disasters expose them for you.
Most emergency plans assume the outage will be short-lived. But what happens if the power is out for 36 hours—or longer? Facilities frequently discover gaps once backup systems are tested for more than a day.
Fuel deliveries may be delayed. Freezers and refrigerators climb above safe temperatures. Generators that start fine for an hour may not hold up under extended use or heavy loads. Staff schedules get stretched, especially overnight.
📌 Pro Tip: Build your plan for at least 72 hours, not just 24. Test fuel supplies and staffing schedules for extended outages.
Many administrators feel confident about their food and water reserves—until surveyors check the expiration dates. Bottled water usually expires within 1–2 years, and many “shelf-stable” foods last only 2–3 years.
That means cases you thought were compliant may already be out of date. It’s one of the most common “gotcha” findings during inspections. By contrast, 10-year canned water and long-shelf-life meals give facilities peace of mind for a full decade.
📌 Pro Tip: Don’t just count cases—check the dates. Rotate short-life items regularly or invest in 10-year supplies to avoid the compliance trap.
It’s easy to forget that emergency kits have expiration dates too. Bandages dry out, medications lose potency, and batteries corrode. Flashlights rust in storage. Even oxygen tanks can become unsafe if not inspected.
Surveyors know this and often check beyond the food and water closet. A first aid kit full of expired supplies is a citation waiting to happen.
📌 Pro Tip: Replace bandages every 3–5 years, swap batteries annually, and check kits quarterly for rust, leaks, or corrosion.
On paper, evacuation looks like a neat checklist. In real life, it rarely goes according to plan. Residents’ oxygen demand can double during transport due to stress and exertion. Transportation bottlenecks quickly form. Staff call-outs may leave you short-handed at the worst possible time.
Emergencies stretch people, not just plans. That’s why logistics that seem fine in a drill often collapse under pressure in a real event.
📌 Pro Tip: Run tabletop drills with unexpected stressors—like a sudden staff shortage or increased oxygen needs. The best time to test the cracks in your plan is before a real evacuation.
In many emergencies, phones are overloaded or down altogether. Families start calling in waves, EMS lines get tied up, and internal communication becomes chaotic. Facilities without a backup system often find themselves scrambling.
This is another gap surveyors look for: not just if you have a communication plan, but whether it would hold up when demand spikes.
📌 Pro Tip: Assign one staff member as a family liaison during emergencies. Test backup systems—radios, or mass messaging tools—before you need them.
It’s easy to overlook these issues when everything seems calm. But emergencies have a way of exposing weaknesses that drills can’t always predict. And surveyors are well aware—many citations come from exactly these overlooked areas.
The financial risk is real too. A single deficiency can cost $10,000 to $40,000 or more. That’s often far more expensive than the cost of staying compliant in the first place.
Emergencies don’t expose the obvious—they expose the overlooked. Extended outages, expired supplies, evacuation stress, and communication failures are the kinds of gaps that separate facilities that “look ready” from those that actually are.
The good news? With a little foresight, you can address these areas before surveyors—or storms—find them for you.
📌 Next Step: Take 30 minutes this month to review your plan against these five gaps. It could save your facility thousands—and keep your residents safer when the unexpected happens.