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Explanation of the terminology

It is important to become familiar with what is meant by emergency planning and preparedness. Michael Gilbert explains the terminology
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So, what do we mean by the terms emergency planning and preparedness. The first thing to say is that emergency planning and preparedness are linked. Emergency preparedness describes a process for ensuring that an organisation can respond effectively to any kind of disruptive challenge it may face. There are various different stages of emergency preparedness and these include, firstly, understanding the scope of the emergency arrangements so you understand what you’re trying to achieve. Next, is ensuring buy-in and ownership by the organisation. And the most important stage is actually developing the necessary emergency plans. Almost as important is implementation and that means training and testing.
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And finally, it is important to make the sure the plans are reviewed to ensure that you keep the arrangements live. The emergency plan is a key element of emergency preparedness. What the plan does is detail how the organisation will respond to specific events. It explains how the emergency response is organised and the actions the response team will be taking to deal with that emergency. It’s easy to confuse the terms, but it is important to understand the distinctions and also how they work together.

It is important to become familiar with what is meant by emergency planning and preparedness.

In this video, Michael Gilbert explains the terminology, including some of the key differences between emergency preparedness and an emergency plan.

Is having a plan enough to make us prepared?

Emergency planning and preparedness are linked but they are not interchangeable.

Emergency preparedness describes the process for ensuring that an organisation can respond effectively to any kind of disruptive challenge.

The emergency plan details how an organisation will respond to specific events. It explains the organisation of the response and actions to be taken.

(Perry and Lindell 2003)

Your task

From your experience to date, why do you think there is more to emergency preparedness than simply producing a plan?

References

Perry, R.W. and Lindell, M. K., (2003) ‘Preparedness for emergency response: guidelines for the emergency planning process’. Disasters 27 (4), 336-350

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Emergency Planning and Preparedness: An Introduction

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