EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES ARCHIVES
Tailoring an Emergency Operations Plan
Raphael M. Barishansky and Audrey Mazurek
March 2, 2011
The old tailor’s maxim – “Measure twice; cut once” – is also a suitable approach to the writing of an all-hazards Emergency Operations Plan for a health department. Here is a comprehensive and easy-to-follow guide to the planning, writing, reviewing, and approval processes necessary to the drafting, development, and dissemination
When High-Tech Fails: Back to Plan B
Joseph Cahill
March 2, 2011
Modern communications systems are a marvel to behold – and to use. And they keep getting better, generation after generation. The only problem, though, is that they sometimes fail, for inexplicable reasons and at the worst possible times. Which is why a backup system (pen and paper, perhaps?) is still
Public Health Emergency Resilience: The Next Challenging Step
Bruce Clements
February 23, 2011
The four keys to maintaining and improving the nation’s public health and emergency preparedness, according to HSPD-21 and other policy directives, are improved capabilities in bio-surveillance, countermeasures distribution, mass-casualty care, and community resilience. Considerable progress has been made in upgrading the first three of those essential “components” – but the
The Missing Leg of a Well Balanced Facility Security Platform
Joseph W. Trindal
February 23, 2011
The protection of high-value sites is one of the principal tasks spelled out in federal, state, local, and private-sector resilience policies and programs – most of which focus primarily on risk assessments, advance planning, and the implementation of effective security measures. A “fourth leg” – functional security testing – is
USCG’s Small-Vessel Security Strategy Ready for Launch
Corey Ranslem
February 23, 2011
It might look like a yacht and might even maneuver like a yacht. But it could be, instead, a cleverly disguised missile launcher, in yacht’s clothing, entering New York Harbor or coming up the Potomac to strike a new blow for Islamic fundamentalism and against the wicked American imperialists. Here
Private Sector Language: Resilience & the Supply Chain Element
Dennis R. Schrader
February 16, 2011
Bureaucratic Abstractions vs. Private-Sector Certitudes – that is one of the more difficult problems, it says here, behind at least some of the “communications difficulties” between public and private-sector resilience professionals. Merging the two vocabularies would be a common-sense way to remove some current obstacles to achievement of the same
The Three Ts of Terrorism – Finding the Facts in the News
Jordan Nelms
February 16, 2011
The Target hit, the Tactics used, and the Technology involved – all provide a wealth of information that can be used by everyday citizens to find out the “real facts” behind a terrorist incident and/or other mass-casualty event. Also not to be ignored is the telling clue, noticed only by
Pre-Exposure Anthrax Vaccination: A Horse & Cart Situation
Thomas K. Zink
February 9, 2011
On one side of the scale is “probably less than one gram of anthrax.” On the other side are an estimated six million doses of vaccine thrown away each year – as well as, quite possibly, the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent people. It says here that the
Air National Guard Resumes Life-Saving CCATT Mission
Ellen Krenke
February 9, 2011
Despite facing some of the most deadly combat environments in the nation’s history, the d”saved rate” of forward-deployed U.S. military units on the frequently shifting battleground in Pakistan and Afghanistan is also at a record high – thanks in large part to the medics/corpsmen, doctors, nurses, and CCATT-enriched aerovac units
Disaster Resilience: An Emergency Manager’s Perspective
Kay C. Goss
February 9, 2011
Like the forward pass in football, “Resilience” was once a vague notion, theoretical concept, and interesting afterthought. In the past several years, though, it has become both the firm foundation for and operational imperative of a truly comprehensive preparedness plan. Here are some relevant comments from one of the nation’s
PTSD: Its Causes, Effects, and Possible Strategies
Joseph Cahill
February 2, 2011
It is now well documented that members of the nation’s armed forces who have been in combat later suffer from an extremely harmful aftereffect known as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD. Many first responders face the same type of traumatic situations and display many of the same symptoms. What can/should
Storm Warnings: Communications and Utility Resilience
Omar Alkhalaf
February 2, 2011
After-action reports are valuable both in establishing precisely what went wrong, and why – particularly if used to ensure that the same mistakes are not made a second time. They are even more valuable, though, if used by other political jurisdictions as lessons learned to upgrade their own preparations and
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