Fire Safety in Your Client’s Home
Published: 29 August 2023
Published: 29 August 2023
Most fatal house fires are preventable (Queensland Government 2021). Do you know how to stay safe while caring for clients in their homes?
In order to prevent harm, serious injury or death from fire, you must be able to identify and address fire hazards or risks in clients’ homes. Furthermore, clients should be adequately educated on how to minimise fire hazards and respond to an emergency situation.
If a client is appearing to have difficulty keeping their home environment safe, this may indicate that the client is not suitable to remain at home and alternative arrangements may need to be considered.
In care settings, emergency event response and risk management are directly tied to the Aged Care Quality Standards Standard 5: Organisation’s Service Environment.
Older adults and people living with disability are at increased risk of mortality or injury from house fires, with older adults over 65 accounting for almost half of house fire fatalities (SAMFS 2022; Fire and Rescue NSW 2023a).
There are a variety of reasons why older adults and people living with disability are more vulnerable to fire threats, including:
(Cassidy et al. 2021)
An essential component of fire safety and risk assessment is basic knowledge about how fires start and spread, and how they can be extinguished.
There are three main reasons (excluding arson) why fires start: apathy, ignorance and carelessness. These can generally be attributed to lack of fire safety knowledge, recklessness and failure to pay attention to small details. Appropriate fire education and being able to identify and respond to hazards is therefore crucial in fire prevention (DHHS 2018).
It is also important to remember the fire triangle of heat, oxygen and fuel. In order for combustion to occur, all three of these elements must be present. Removing one is the key to extinguishing a fire.
(DHHS 2018)
In the event of a fire, you must always ensure that the chosen extinguishing method is appropriate for the type of fire you are dealing with. For example, water must not be used to extinguish an electrical fire as this could result in electrocution (DHHS 2018).
There are a number of ways in which fires can spread:
(DHHS 2018)
Most house fires start in kitchens, bedrooms and lounge areas (Fire and Rescue NSW 2023b).
The following table lists common causes of fires around the home. When caring for a client in their home it is important to recognise and address any fire hazards that are present, and ensure the client is informed about potential risks.
Look out for these fire hazards:
Type of Fire | Hazards |
---|---|
Kitchen fires |
|
Power/appliance fires |
|
Bedroom fires |
|
Laundry fires |
|
Living area fires |
|
(CFA 2021; QLD Fire and Emergency Services 2022; Fire and Rescue NSW 2023b)
Smoke alarms are an integral component of fire safety in the home. Most fire fatalities can be attributed to a lack of working smoke alarms or poorly located smoke alarms (SAMFS 2022).
The following are recommendations for household smoke alarms:
(Fire and Rescue NSW 2023c)
The following tips will help reduce the risk of fire and ensure older adults and people living with disability are able to evacuate quickly if necessary.
(CFA 2015; SAMFS 2022)
As well as checking that the client’s home is safe and free from hazards, you should ensure the client is appropriately informed about what to do in an emergency situation.
It is important that the client has a well-formulated escape plan that outlines several evacuation routes. The client should familiarise themselves with their escape plan and keep it somewhere prominent (e.g. on the fridge) as a reminder. They should practice their escape plan at least twice per year (Fire and Rescue NSW 2023d).
In the event of an emergency, the client may be unable to evacuate due to mobility difficulties or other factors. The client should know what to do in this situation. Generally, the best option is to call triple zero (000), get down low on the floor, close the door of the room and place towels, bedding or clothes at the bottom of the door to prevent smoke from coming in (SAMFS 2022).
Clients who are receiving home care are often more at risk of harm from house fires due to age or disability. Ensuring that your clients are appropriately educated about fire safety and that their homes are free of fire hazards is essential in reducing the likelihood of injury or death from fire.
Question 1 of 3
True or false: Most fire fatalities are related to poor use of smoke alarms.