Home care policy and procedure manual outline
By Scott McKenzie, founder of Home Care Agency Blueprint · Updated
Work through thirty-two sections in seven groups, from administration to records. Each section names its source, points you to your state’s rules, or is marked as your own planning. It is a planning aid, not legal advice, and it does not tell you what your state requires.
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Mark each section Done, In progress, Not yet or Does not apply. Blank sections stay Not checked.
A. Administration and governance
1. An organization chart and a written statement of who owns the agency, who makes decisions, who supervises caregivers and who is in charge when the administrator is away.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
2. A policy approval process: who drafts each policy, who approves it, how changes are dated and how staff are told about them.
Your own planning
3. A record retention policy: which client and staff records you keep, where, for how long, and how they are destroyed.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
4. A named person responsible for business continuity, and a written plan for keeping services running if the office, phones or computer systems are down.
Source: Ready.gov, Business emergency plans
B. Client rights and privacy
5. A client rights notice: what clients and their representatives are told about their rights, and when and how they receive it.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
6. A grievance process for clients and families: how to raise a concern, the one person who owns complaints, how each one is tracked and answered, and a promise of no retaliation.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
7. Nondiscrimination and language access: how you serve clients who need an interpreter or translated materials, and, if you receive federal funds such as Medicaid, the notices and language help federal civil rights law expects.
Source: HHS OCR, Civil rights laws for providers (incl. Section 1557); HHS OCR, Limited English proficiency
8. Privacy and confidentiality: who may see client information, how it is stored and shared, how you record a client’s or representative’s permission before sharing, and what staff may not discuss.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
9. A written decision, made with counsel, on whether your agency is a HIPAA covered entity, and if it is, which Privacy Rule and Security Rule policies you need.
Source: HHS OCR, HIPAA covered entities and business associates; HHS OCR, Summary of the HIPAA Privacy Rule; HHS OCR, Summary of the HIPAA Security Rule
C. Intake to discharge
10. Inquiry and intake: how a call or referral is taken, what is recorded, and who decides whether you can serve the client.
Your own planning
11. In-home assessment: who visits before services start, what they look at, and how it is documented.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
12. Service agreement: the written agreement a client or representative signs before services start, and what it covers.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
13. Care or service plan: how it is written from the assessment, shared with caregivers, and updated when the client’s needs or condition change.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
14. Scope of services: which tasks your caregivers may and may not do. Your state defines what non-medical caregivers may do; skilled or medical tasks may need a different license or certification, depending on your state.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
15. Scheduling and missed visits: how shifts are assigned, what happens when a caregiver is late or cannot come, and how the client is told.
Your own planning
16. Discharge and transfer: when services end or move to another provider, how the client is told, and what records go with them.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
D. Caregiver HR (staff you already employ)
17. Job descriptions for each role, matching the services you actually offer.
Your own planning
18. Conduct and boundaries: gifts, money, personal relationships, phones, rides and confidentiality, and the steps you take when a rule is broken.
Your own planning
19. Timekeeping and pay practices: how hours, travel between clients and overtime are recorded. Federal wage rules for home care workers are changing; check the current DOL status and your state.
Source: DOL WHD, FLSA and direct care workers; DOL WHD, Field Assistance Bulletin 2025-4
20. Training records: you keep a record of each caregiver’s training and follow your state’s training rules. See the training guide.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
21. Competency checks and supervision of caregivers, including supervisory visits to clients’ homes where your state requires them.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
22. Personnel file contents: what goes in each employee’s file, who may see it, and how long you keep it.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
E. Safety and infection control
23. Standard precautions and hand hygiene: what caregivers do on every visit, and the gloves and other protective equipment you supply.
Source: CDC, Standard precautions; CDC, Hand hygiene for healthcare workers
24. A bloodborne pathogens exposure control plan if any worker has occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials. Check whether your state runs its own OSHA plan.
Source: OSHA, Bloodborne pathogens standard (29 CFR 1910.1030); OSHA, State Plans
25. Workplace violence and home safety: how caregivers report threats, when they may leave an unsafe home, and how reports are followed up.
Source: OSHA, Workplace violence in healthcare; OSHA, Home healthcare
26. Client-home hazard reporting: how caregivers report unsafe conditions in a client’s home, such as hostile animals or unsanitary conditions, and who acts on it.
Source: OSHA, Home healthcare
F. Emergencies and incidents
27. An emergency plan: how you reach clients and staff, keep current emergency contacts for every client, and decide which clients are checked first in a storm, outage or other emergency.
Source: Ready.gov, Business emergency plans; CMS, Emergency Preparedness Rule
28. Incident reporting and follow-up: what counts as an incident, who is told and when, how it is written up, and the follow-up step that closes it.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
29. Suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation: how staff report to your state’s adult protective services, and your state’s mandated-reporter rules.
Source: ACL, Adult Protective Services; Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
G. Records and upkeep
30. Client records: what goes in each client’s record, who may see it, and how it is kept secure.
Check your state (see the license guide, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint)
31. A review date on every policy, a version log of what changed, and a staff sign-off showing who was trained on each change.
Your own planning
32. Where the manual lives: a current copy staff and caregivers can reach when they need it, and how old versions are retired.
Your own planning
This outline is a planning aid. It does not tell you what your state requires or whether your manual meets it. Not legal advice. Check with counsel and your state licensing agency.
How to use the outline
Mark a section Done only when the written policy exists, matches how your agency works, and staff have been trained on it. Use Not yet for gaps you know about and In progress for policies you are drafting. Sections you leave blank are shown as Not checked, never as Done. Mark a section Does not apply only after checking your state’s rules.
- Mark each section Done, In progress, Not yet or Does not apply.
- Use the source line under each section to check what the rule or guidance says, and check state items against your state’s licensing rules.
- Ask counsel about anything marked as a legal decision, such as whether HIPAA applies to your agency.
- Work on the sections marked Not yet, and write each policy for how your agency actually works.
- Print the outline or download a CSV, and put a review date on each finished policy.
What the outline does not do
It does not tell you what your state requires, whether your manual meets your state’s rules, or whether your agency can open. Those depend on your state, your license type, your services and your payers. It helps you see which sections you have written and which questions to ask.
Where your entries are stored
Your entries are saved only in this browser on this device so you can come back to them. They are never sent to us. Printing and CSV download happen on your device, CSV cells are protected against spreadsheet formulas, and Reset erases only this outline’s saved entries.
A template is a starting draft. A purchased or downloaded manual can save typing, but it may describe another state’s rules, services you do not offer or steps your staff do not follow. Rewrite each policy for how your agency actually works, date it, train staff on it, and check it against your state’s rules.
Your state sets the details. Your state’s licensing rules decide which written policies a home care agency needs and what they cover. This site does not list state requirements. Check with your state licensing agency; homecarelicenseguide.com, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint, collects each state’s licensing sources. Not legal advice. Check with counsel and your state licensing agency.
Frequently asked questions
Why does the outline not give me a score?
A score would suggest your manual meets a standard, and we cannot judge that. Only your state’s rules and the agencies that apply them can. The outline shows counts and lists the sections marked Not yet instead.
Does every section apply to my agency?
Not always. Some depend on your state, your services, whether you receive federal funds or whether HIPAA applies to you. Mark those Does not apply only after checking, and confirm the rest with your state licensing agency.
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