Audit Report on the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation’s Compliance with Local Law 20 and the Placement of Automated External Defibrillators

Executive Summary

This brief summarizes our audit findings regarding the compliance by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (“Parks”) with Local Law 20 and the placement of Automated External Defibrillators (AED).  In 2005, the New York City Council enacted Local Law 20 requiring the placement of AEDs in public locations.  These devices are specifically to be placed in: nursing homes; senior centers; the publicly accessible portions of buildings maintained by the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS), Division of Facilities Management and Construction; selected City-operated parks; and certain ferry terminals and ferries owned and operated by the City.

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DoHMH) issued rules to implement Local Law 20 in November 2005.  Local Law 20 and the DoHMH rules require that AEDs be acquired and operated in accordance with New York State Public Health Law §3000-b, which states that personnel must be trained in their use, and that the devices must be registered with the Regional Emergency Medical Services Council of New York City, Inc. (REMSCO), before use by non-health care professionals.  REMSCO is a not for profit, tax exempt corporation whose function is to improve emergency medical services for New York City.

According to Local Law 20, any facility with an AED to be used by non-medical personnel must meet the requirements described below.  Each facility must:

• Have and maintain a collaborative agreement with an emergency health care provider. The collaborative agreement must be in writing and include practice protocols (including a Site-Specific Response and Maintenance Plan), and policies and procedures that shall assure compliance with New York State Public Health Law §3000-b.  The facility shall register and file a copy of the collaborative agreement with REMSCO prior to operating the AED.

• Develop and maintain a Site-Specific Response and Maintenance Plan.  This written plan, including written practice protocols, is required and must be made available to DOHMH upon request.

• Designate specific locations for the placement of the AED.  AEDs are required to be located prominently and placed so that the equipment can be accessed quickly at all times by persons trained in its operation.

• Have appropriate AED signage.  AED signage is required to appear on the wall informing the public as to the availability of an AED at that location and on the face of the storage container in which the AED is contained.

• Have appropriately trained staff.  Every facility mandated to have an AED must identify and arrange to have employees trained in their operation and in CPR by a training facility that has been approved by New York State Department of Health.  The number of trained responders in each public place shall be commensurate with the size and configuration of the facility to permit rapid response during regular business hours.

• Have procedures to be followed to notify the emergency medical services system through 911.

Local Law 20 also requires that the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (Parks), the audit subject, identify at least six parks in each borough under its jurisdiction to be considered a public place and determine the quantity and location of AEDs.  Further, at least one of the selected parks in each borough must exceed 170 acres.

Results

Our audit found that Parks generally complies with Local Law 20 and with New York State Public Health Law §3000-b regarding the training and certifying of City personnel on the use of AEDs, the provision of operational AEDs and adequate supplies, and the placement of AEDs at Parks’ facilities and recreational centers.  Parks maintains inspection reports and device registrations and is in compliance with provisions of its collaborative emergency health care provider agreement with REMSCO-NYC (Collaborative Agreement).  However, we found that since Parks has not refiled the Collaborative Agreement every two years as required, it does not have a current Collaborative Agreement.  Furthermore, two locations were missing proper signage indicating the availability and location of the AEDs in Parks buildings.

The audit makes two recommendations,

• Parks should ensure that it has a current signed Collaborative Agreement on file with REMSCO-NYC.
• Parks should ensure that all its parks and recreation centers have the required signage at the main entrance indicating the location of AEDs and the contact information of the site’s trained responders.

Agency Response

Parks officials agreed with the report’s recommendations and stated that Parks “will ensure that a newly signed Collaborative Agreement is in place” and Parks also have installed proper AED signage at the two locations cited in the report.