Ideas That Work: Keep Calm and Locate the Nearest Exit

In the event of an emergency, you and your staff won’t have a lot of time to act, but you can help increase the chances of effective evacuation by posting the details of your facility-specific route in high-traffic areas. Hunterdon Center for Surgery in Flemington, N.J., does this by posting easy-to-follow guides of the actions its staff must take in the event of an emergency above evacuation maps with the exit route clearly delineated in bright red arrows. The evacuation maps and procedure guides were added when the ASC moved into its new building. “They were originally a way to help staff remember our evacuation plan since we hadn’t been in the space for long,” says Lisa York, MSN, RN, CASC, CAIP, the center’s executive director. “They have since been helpful in orienting new staff and as a review when we conduct evacuation drills.”