Coordinated	  Disaster	  Response	  for	  Oﬀsite	  Facili;es	  	  Using	  a	  Customized	  Emergency	  Ac;on	  Plan	  Eric G Meyer MD, Jorge M Hastings, Brian W Flynn EdD, James C West MD, Joshua C Morganstein MD
Center	  for	  the	  Study	  of	  Trauma1c	  Stress,	  Department	  of	  Psychiatry,	  Uniformed	  Services	  University	  of	  the	  Health	  Sciences,	  Bethesda,	  MD	  ABSTRACT	  Comprehensive	  prepara0on	  enhances	  the	  eﬀec0veness	  and	  coordina0on	  of	  emergency	  and	  disaster	  response	  for	  all	  stakeholders	  impacted	  by	  these	  events.	  Workplace	  planning	  and	  prepara0on	  must	  consider	  unique	  factors	  when	  developing	  response	  plans	  for	  personnel	  impacted	  by	  a	  wide	  range	  of	  emergencies,	  including	  natural	  and	  human-­‐made	  disasters.	  A	  thorough	  understanding	  of	  these	  factors	  is	  cri0cal	  for	  the	  care	  and	  welfare	  of	  all	  employees.	  Organiza0ons	  with	  oﬀsite	  facili0es	  that	  are	  geographically	  separated	  from	  their	  parent	  organiza0on	  may	  encounter	  unique	  disaster	  planning	  challenges.	  For	  instance,	  personnel	  working	  in	  oﬀsite	  loca0ons	  may	  not	  be	  covered	  by	  the	  disaster	  planning	  guidance	  of	  their	  parent	  organiza0on.	  In	  addi0on,	  policies	  and	  procedures	  of	  both	  the	  oﬀsite	  building	  management	  as	  well	  as	  the	  parent	  organiza0on	  may	  need	  to	  be	  considered	  when	  developing	  emergency	  response	  plans	  for	  oﬀsite	  facili0es.	  In	  response	  to	  a	  series	  of	  local	  and	  regional	  workplace	  emergency	  events,	  the	  Center	  for	  the	  Study	  of	  Trauma0c	  Stress	  (CSTS)	  developed	  a	  customized	  Emergency	  Ac0on	  Plan	  (EAP)	  for	  use	  at	  our	  facility,	  an	  oﬀsite	  loca0on	  from	  the	  main	  campus	  of	  the	  Uniformed	  Services	  University	  (USU).	  Three	  challenges	  emerged:	  1)	  ensuring	  CSTS	  oﬀsite	  facility	  response	  plans	  were	  consistent	  with	  those	  of	  USU	  where	  appropriate,	  2)	  de-­‐conﬂic0ng	  guidance	  between	  USU	  and	  the	  oﬀsite	  building	  management	  response	  plans,	  3)	  ensuring	  oﬀsite	  building	  management	  emergency	  procedures	  were	  incorporated	  into	  CSTS	  response	  plans.	  The	  CSTS	  EAP	  eﬀec0vely	  addressed	  these	  issues,	  incorporated	  lessons	  learned	  into	  the	  ﬁnal	  document,	  and	  provides	  a	  template	  for	  leaders	  and	  managers	  at	  oﬀsite	  facili0es	  to	  develop	  op0mal	  emergency	  and	  disaster	  plans	  which	  enhance	  the	  eﬀec0veness	  of	  response	  by	  their	  personnel	  at	  oﬀsite	  facili0es.	  	  PROCESS	  NON-­‐COORDINATED	  PLAN	  Main	  Loca0on	  Oﬀsite	  A	  Did	  something	  happen?	  

COORDINATED	  PLAN	  www.cstsonline.org/emergency-­‐ac;on-­‐plan	  Main	  Loca0on	  ID	  SITES	  /	  POCS	  Oﬀsite	  B	  Oﬀsite	  B	  Oﬀsite	  A	  DECONFLICT	  EMERGENCY	  DIRECTIVES	  ?
Oﬀsite	  C	  Wait!	  Didn’t	  the	  building	  management	  say	  to	  shelter-­‐in-­‐place???	  

DEVELOP	  CUSTOM	  OFFSITE	  PLANS	  ESTABLISH	  COMM	  PLAN	  TO	  MAIN	  SITE	  Main	  Loca0on	  Plan	  I	  wonder	  how	  the	  oﬀsite	  people	  are	  doing?	  

Oﬀsite	  C	  Integrated	  Plan	  A	  Main	  Loca0on	  Plan	  Integrated	  Plan	  B	  Integrated	  Plan	  C	  ?

?	  

Good	  to	  know	  our	  oﬀsite	  folks	  are	  safe.	  

PRACTICE!	  

Main	  loca0on	  plan	  isn’t	  working	  here!	  

ADVERSE	  EFFECTS	  POSITIVE	  IMPACT	  Limited	  communica;on	  and/or	  visibility	  across	  sites.	  
Direc;ves	  may	  conﬂict	  with	  oﬀsite	  facility	  	  management	  plans.	  
Response	  plan	  may	  not	  exist	  and	  oLen	  fails	  to	  account	  for	  all	  sites.	  
Unable	  to	  maintain	  accountability	  for	  all	  personnel.	  
Personnel	  confused,	  frustrated,	  and	  unable	  to	  respond	  due	  to	  uncertainty.	  

Established	  POCs	  and	  communica;on	  procedures	  across	  sites.	  
Direc;ves	  coordinated	  with	  oﬀsite	  facility	  management	  plans.	  
Response	  plan	  tailored	  to	  meet	  unique	  needs	  and	  requirements	  of	  each	  site.	  
Accountability	  for	  all	  personnel	  rapidly	  obtained	  as	  part	  of	  response	  plan.	  
Personnel	  more	  eﬀec;vely	  execute	  plan	  due	  to	  beTer	  coordina;on.	  

The	  views	  expressed	  in	  this	  presenta0on	  are	  those	  of	  the	  author(s)	  and	  do	  not	  reﬂect	  the	  oﬃcial	  policy	  of	  the	  Department	  of	  Army/Navy/Air	  Force,	  Department	  of	  Defense,	  or	  U.S.	  Government.