Emergency Management Resources

Emergency Management for Epidemics

The ability to coordinate response actions is recognized as a foundational element of global health security capacity. Emergency management, and its application to public health, is not limited to
response actions, however. The term “emergency management” describes the organization and management of resources and responsibilities associated with all aspects of emergencies, including before and after the response effort.

COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of strong capacities for organizing and managing the complex realities of a pandemic response, at regional, national, and local scales. One asset commonly used in emergency management for coordination of response is an Emergency Operations Center, or EOC. However, emergency management, and the benefits it can provide, may not be familiar to many of the health authorities, especially at sub-national or local levels, that are battling to maintain control of the response effort.

To address this need, CGHSS faculty, in collaboration with subject matter experts at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Talus Analytics, have created a website containing training materials, checklists, and other resources for development and strengthening of public health emergency management capacities, with an emphasis on Emergency Operations Centers. The aim is to provide foundational self-directed learning materials that can help support the use of emergency management principles, including designing and internationalization of Emergency Operations Centers, to partners around the world who may be looking for support. The website also serves as a portal for asking questions about emergency management best practices as they relate to public health, and especially epidemic response, as well as to request further technical assistance.

The website is available here: www.epidemic-em.org

Support for this project was provided by the CDC Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Bibliographies

The Emergency Management Resources compiled by the Center for Global Health Science and Security aim to provide users with comprehensive bibliographies on the topics of National Multi-hazard and Health Sector Hazards Preparedness and Response Plans, as well as Risk & Crisis Communication. The bibliographies include examples of current national preparedness and response plans available online, as well as guidance documents and peer review articles outlining research and emergency management best practices relating to drafting multi-hazard plans and risk communication strategies. 

• Multi-Hazard & Health Hazard Preparedness and Response Plan Resources (new window)
• Risk Communication Resources (new window)

Note: the bibliographies provided here are live documents that are continuously updated.