united states Expertise

Emergency Preparedness & Response

Preparing Communities to Respond in an Emergency

Emergency Preparedness in the US When disaster strikes, public health and health care systems face a need to protect patients and ensure the continuity of ongoing services and also expand quickly to manage a surge in demand.

We work with public health and health care partners to prepare.

We provide technical assistance on all aspects of public health and health care emergency preparedness and response. Together, we develop and strengthen plans and procedures to be ready for any emergency, including floods, fires, terrorist attacks, and disease outbreaks. We collaborate to implement health-focused jurisdictional risk assessments (JRAs) and hazard vulnerability assessments (HVAs) that reflect community needs and are based on national standards and guidelines.

JSI is proud to be supporting the U.S. public health system’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

We strengthen capacity in areas such as community preparedness, infectious disease surveillance, emergency public information and warning, medical surge, countermeasures dispensing, non-pharmaceutical interventions, and volunteer management.

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Assessing Hazards, Risks & Vulnerabilities

We conduct assessments with local, regional, and state-level partners to identify the greatest risks to the health care, behavioral health, and public health systems. We work with clients to design and conduct risk assessments that meet Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) requirements for hazard vulnerability assessments.

While many risk assessment processes end at the assessment of hazards and preparedness, we work with clients and their partners to determine potential mitigation strategies and action steps to address identified gaps. As part of this work, we conduct background research to identify best practices and resources and tools developed by other jurisdictions to address risk. Following the selection of mitigation strategies for implementation, we work with clients to identify the best way to implement them.

Public Health & Health Care Emergency Plan Development

We have extensive experience working at the multi-state, state, local, and institutional-levels to develop emergency preparedness and response plans, high-threat infectious disease plans, and continuity-of-operations plans.

We use a participatory approach to plan development and strengthening, drawing on the expertise and experience of all stakeholders to forge effective plans that reflect context while incorporating planning guidance and promising practices.

We work closely with state and local health department teams to develop emergency operations plans, annexes addressing functions such as medical countermeasures dispensing and medical surge, and recovery plans that are consistent with the National Incident Management System (NIMS), and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Comprehensive Preparedness Guide methodologies and standards. We ensure that plans incorporate Incident Command System (ICS)-compliant command and control structures along with standard operating procedures that reflect organizational realities.

Emergency Preparedness Training

Working with a team of emergency preparedness, instructional design, and web design experts, we develop both online and classroom-based training programs that are geared to meet the needs of the adult learner. Topics include community preparedness, continuity of operations planning, social media in emergency preparedness and response, and epidemiological investigation.

Exercise Design & Evaluation

We work with our public health and health care coalition and system partners to develop and strengthen plans through the implementation of the Homeland Security Exercise Evaluation Program (HSEEP)-compliant exercises that prepare participants to respond to a range of emergencies. We convene Exercise Planning Teams to design exercises that meet our clients’ objectives. Our HSEEP and Master Exercise Practitioner Program- (MEPP-) trained staff develop HSEEP-compliant exercise documents, conduct evaluator briefings, facilitate/control the exercise, and develop After Action Reports and Improvement Plans to strengthen response capability.

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