HOSPITALS
Nonmedical Concerns for Hospitals in a Mass-Casualty Incident
While there are obvious and significant medical concerns associated with mass-casualty incidents (MCIs), there are also nonmedical concerns that can adversely impact a hospital during an MCI. Failure to plan for these issues, including consequence management, could result in life-safety concerns for responders, hospital staff, patients, the public, and others at the hospital. These planning elements are the responsibilities of professional emergency management for strategic and operational design, and the tactical missions for the…
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The Current State of the Opioid Crisis & Other Emerging Threats
John Johnson
January 22, 2025
Opioid deaths have surged dramatically since the pandemic. Manufacturers exploit legal loopholes and use precursor chemicals that often evade detection and regulation. These new and growing threats present challenges to public safety that demand innovative solutions and a proactive approach.

Preparing for the Next Biothreat: Lessons Not to Forget
Christy Anderson
January 15, 2025
In 2024, senior officials from hospitals, healthcare organizations, public health, emergency management, and other responder communities convened at two workshops to share the lessons they learned as leaders during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their lessons learned can help communities better prepare for the next biothreat.

Mission Ready Packages: New Possibilities
Kay C. Goss
January 15, 2025
In 2005, the Superdome in New Orleans served as a mass shelter and accommodated over 25,000 people during Hurricane Katrina. Those accommodations, though, were inadequate, with limited power, plumbing, and other resources. To avoid a similar scenario, the Mission Ready Venue Initiative enables stadiums to be a resource for immediate

Growing Foreign Threats to National Security, Part 2: Emergency Management Approaches and Choices
Glen Woodbury
October 30, 2024
This is Part 2 of a two-part article that explores the nation-state threat and its implications for the emergency management community regarding the operations, resilience, resourcing, strategies, and policies necessary to better prepare for future events.
Hospitals Archives
Vulnerability and Exploitation: Human Trafficking After Natural Disasters
Benjamin Thomas Greer and Nathan DiPillo
August 28, 2024
Disasters inherently come with known and unknown threats. One looming emerging threat is human trafficking because traffickers capitalize on the vulnerability these events create to
Dual-World Tabletop Exercises: Addressing Unmet Infrastructure Needs
Charles (Chuck) L. Manto
August 21, 2024
The U.S. critical infrastructure is vulnerable to many forms of cyber and electromagnetic threats. This article presents a new tabletop exercise concept for addressing these
Return on Investments in Public Engagement
June Isaacson Kailes
August 14, 2024
Public engagement and participation involve community members in problem-solving, decision-making, and policy development. This article shares some new practices for creating actionable opportunities for key
Bridging Preparedness: State Medication Reserves for Pandemics and Beyond
Angie Im
August 14, 2024
New human cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza have been confirmed in the United States. Although most cases like this do not escalate to pandemic
Lessons in Social Media: Preparing Kids and Community Leaders for Disasters
Patricia Frost and Michael Prasad
August 7, 2024
Addressing children’s needs during a crisis can be challenging. Leveraging social media to create crisis communication campaigns can be an effective way to boost community
The Key Bridge Collapse – Through the Lens of Community Lifelines
Michael Prasad
July 17, 2024
The eight major elements of Community Lifelines use traffic-light-type color-coding to categorize the adverse impact status of a disaster. The article’s author has applied this
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HOSPITALS
Nonmedical Concerns for Hospitals in a Mass-Casualty Incident
While there are obvious and significant medical concerns associated with mass-casualty incidents (MCIs), there are also nonmedical concerns that can adversely impact a hospital during an MCI. Failure to plan for these issues, including consequence management, could result in life-safety concerns for responders, hospital staff, patients, the public, and others at the hospital. These planning elements are the responsibilities of professional emergency management for strategic and operational design, and the tactical missions for the…
Most Recent

Growing Foreign Threats to National Security, Part 1: Challenges and Considerations
Glen Woodbury
October 23, 2024
Part 1 of a two-part series explores the nation-state threat and its implications for the emergency management community, regarding the

National Laboratory Partnerships: Linking Operations and Research
Ryan Eddy and Ann Lesperance
September 25, 2024
The September 11 terrorist attacks in 2001 spurred a pivotal change in the way the U.S. approaches preparedness for threats

Responder Fatigue: A Growing Concern
Dan Scherr and Tanya M. Scherr
September 18, 2024
Emergencies require immediate action by people trained to extinguish fires, treat injuries, protect the public, and perform other life and

AI and 911 Call Systems: A New Ally or a Hidden Risk?
Michael Breslin
September 11, 2024
From natural disasters to sophisticated cyberthreats, the risks to public safety are evolving fast. As unexpected events can strike at
Hospitals Archives
Primary Care Investments to Increase Community Resilience
Angie Im
April 17, 2024
Community health centers are medical lifelines for millions of Americans. However, financial constraints and healthcare workforce challenges strain these critical resources. New initiatives and additional
Mental Awareness to Enhance Preparedness
Andrew (Andy) Altizer
April 17, 2024
Emergency managers, public health officials, and first responders often stress the importance of physical fitness, but what about mental fitness? Without focused mental agility in
Dungeons and Disasters: Gamification of Public Health Responses
Michael Etzel and Michael Prasad
April 10, 2024
New technologies offer new ways to train personnel and exercise public health responses like COVID-19 and prepare response agencies for many other threats and hazards.
Interoperability During Mass Casualty Incidents
Charles J. Guddemi and Catherine L. Feinman
April 3, 2024
During a mass casualty incident, response agencies must be able to communicate in real-time. This means that interoperability plans need to include everyone involved in
Protecting Infrastructure – Cyber, Physical, and EMP Attacks
David Winks
February 21, 2024
Imagine 3,500 spiders, each with their own style, getting together to create a giant web. That’s how this author describes the U.S. power grid and
Beyond Patient Care: Family Reunification Planning for Hospitals
Michael Prasad
January 17, 2024
To meet a community’s mass care family reunification needs after a disaster, hospitals and other healthcare facilities must have plans and procedures in place for
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