Evacuation Diagrams for Aged Care Facilities in Australia

Aged care facilities present the most challenging evacuation scenarios of any building type. Residents may have dementia, require walking frames or wheelchairs, be bedridden, or be unable to understand verbal instructions. Evacuation in an aged care home is never as simple as "walk to the nearest exit."

This guide covers what aged care operators need to know about evacuation diagram compliance and how diagrams fit into the broader emergency planning framework.

Regulatory Framework

Aged care emergency planning is governed by multiple overlapping requirements:

• Aged Care Quality Standards (Standard 8: Organisational Governance includes emergency and disaster management)
• Australian Standard AS 3745:2010 Planning for Emergencies in Facilities
• National Construction Code (NCC) Class 9a building requirements
• State fire safety legislation and fire authority requirements
• Work Health and Safety (WHS) regulations for staff
• Aged Care Act 1997 and associated Principles

Why Aged Care Is Different

Standard evacuation assumptions do not apply in aged care:

• Most residents cannot self-evacuate. Staff must physically assist or transport them.
• Evacuation is horizontal first (move to an adjacent fire compartment), not vertical. Running down stairs is not an option for most residents.
• Dementia residents may resist evacuation, become agitated, or wander back toward danger
• Night shifts have minimal staff. A 1:15 or 1:20 staff-to-resident ratio at 2am makes full building evacuation extremely difficult.
• Medical equipment (oxygen concentrators, IV lines, monitoring) must be considered
• Residents may not recognise fire alarms or understand what they mean

Defend-in-Place vs Full Evacuation

Most aged care facilities use a "defend-in-place" strategy rather than full building evacuation. This means:

• The building is divided into fire compartments separated by fire-rated walls and doors
• In a fire, residents are moved horizontally to an adjacent compartment, not outside the building
• Full evacuation outside is a last resort, used only when multiple compartments are compromised
• Evacuation diagrams must clearly show fire compartment boundaries and the direction of horizontal evacuation
• Staff must know which compartment to move residents to for every possible fire location

What Diagrams Must Show

In addition to standard AS 3745 elements, aged care evacuation diagrams should include:

• Fire compartment boundaries clearly marked with colour coding or hatching
• Horizontal evacuation direction arrows showing which adjacent compartment to move to
• Smoke door locations (these separate compartments and are critical to the defend-in-place strategy)
• Nurse call panel and fire indicator panel locations
• Medication room and oxygen storage locations
• Mobility equipment storage (wheelchairs, evacuation mattresses, ski sheets)
• External assembly area for full evacuation scenarios
• Emergency contact numbers including the facility manager, clinical nurse, and fire brigade

Staff Training and Diagram Familiarity

Diagrams are only useful if staff can read and act on them under pressure. Aged care staff training should include:

• Reading evacuation diagrams and identifying fire compartments
• Knowing which compartment is the safe refuge for each wing or section
• Using evacuation equipment (ski sheets, evacuation chairs, mattress drags)
• Managing residents with dementia during evacuation
• Night shift procedures with reduced staffing
• Regular drills including simulated horizontal evacuation

Aged Care Quality Standards Compliance

The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission assesses emergency preparedness under Standard 8. Assessors will look for:

• Current evacuation diagrams displayed in appropriate locations
• A documented emergency and disaster management plan
• Evidence of regular emergency drills with staff participation records
• Risk assessments that consider the specific needs of the resident population
• Continuity planning for extended emergencies (bushfire, flood, pandemic)

Get Aged Care Evacuation Diagrams

EvacPath creates evacuation diagrams for aged care facilities that clearly show fire compartments, horizontal evacuation routes, and all safety equipment locations. We understand defend-in-place strategies and the unique requirements of Class 9a buildings.

Send us your floor plans including fire compartment layouts, and we will deliver AS 3745-compliant, print-ready PDFs in 3 to 5 business days. Pricing starts at A$70 per diagram.