Care facilities must comply with state law related to residents, their medical issues, and the use of the local fire department and emergency medical services (EMS) or 911. 

Download and complete an Emergency Facility Worksheet (PDF) and post it for your staff.

View the DSHS Use of Emergency Medical Services Notice (PDF) for when to call 911 and how to prepare for emergency responders.

This does not mean that you should never call 911. When your evaluation or assessment of the resident shows the resident may have a medical emergency, you should call 911.

Meet us at the door

Have a staff member and the resident meet paramedics at the front door and escort them to the resident. 

IMPORTANT! A staff member must stay with the resident for the entire time the paramedics are in your facility. 

Have medical information ready & hand it to the paramedics upon arrival:

• Download and complete this EMS Patient Facesheet (PDF) and print it out for EMS staff
• Provide copies of the patient directives such as Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) or Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST)
• List of the current medications on the EMS Patient Facesheet or print current medications from the patient's medical record
  

State laws and rules require adult family homes, assisted living facilities and nursing homes comply with the following rules:

1. Adult family home staffing must ensure that enough staff are available to meet the needs of each resident, except as provided in WAC 388-76-10200.
2. Residents at risk of falling will have systems and staff to respond to non-emergent falls without calling 9-1-1. This includes evaluating the resident’s condition after a fall and assisting the resident back to the pre-fall position, if there are no signs of injuries.

You should call 9-1-1 when the resident:

• Has an acute, serious, life-threatening medical condition or complaint
• Is medically unstable
• Has an immediate health risk

Do not call 9-1-1 when the resident’s condition is:

• Medically stable
• Non-acute or not serious

This does not mean that you should never call 9-1-1. When your evaluation or assessment of the resident shows the resident may have a medical emergency, you should call 9-1-1.