Mental Awareness to Enhance Preparedness

Red lightbulb with a brain on top and a cord laying underneathEmergency managers, public health officials, and first responders often stress the importance of physical fitness, but what about mental fitness? Without focused mental agility in even one of the emergency management phases, mistakes or subpar performance are likely. Learn about this author’s new acronym that can help prioritize mental health in the planning process.

Interoperability During Mass Casualty Incidents

Man with headset sitting at a desk in front of computersDuring 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 the response. One lesson learned from past incidents is that hospitals are an often overlooked “responder.” Learn what one agency is doing to close this gap in the Washington, DC, region.

Support and Planning Inside 911 Centers

Headphones hanging on cubicle partition in empty call center officeIn an emergency, call 911. This simple instruction is easy to remember, but many do not know about the people, training, and technology required to make this lifesaving tool available 24-7. Learn about what happens inside the four walls of an emergency communications center and the strategic planning every community needs to ensure that someone is always there to answer calls for help.

Protecting Infrastructure – Cyber, Physical, and EMP Attacks

Power lines against a blue skyImagine 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 the complexities related to protecting the nation’s critical infrastructure from cyber, physical, and electromagnetic pulse attacks.

Beyond Patient Care: Family Reunification Planning for Hospitals

Two FEMA personnel sitting at a desk with two men, a woman, and two childrenTo 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 mass casualty incident response, which goes beyond patient care. Here are some recommendations for them to develop a collaborative strategic plan.

Multimodal Transportation Perspectives

Without transportation and communications, emergency response can move at an uncomfortably slow pace, enough so that life, property, and the environment may be unnecessarily compromised. The integrated transportation network must be protected from threats and other risks.

The Race to Interoperability

The Boston Marathon Bombing demonstrated the dedication, commitment, and strength of those who responded that day. The lessons learned from that event continue to strengthen community resilience as participants gather to focus on building interoperability within and between jurisdictions.

Emerging Technologies, Part 4 – Robotics and Automation

This is Part 4 of a five-part series on emerging technologies that can enhance the management of and response to future emergencies and disasters. This part focuses on robotics and automation for enhancing efficiency, safety, and effectiveness in crisis response and mitigation.

Healthcare and Public Health Sector Perspectives

According to the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, National Health Expenditures (NHE) accounted for $4.3 trillion, or 18.3% of the U.S. gross domestic product. Find out how the Healthcare and Public Health Sector’s interdependencies can affect any community.
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