Essay Example on Disaster Management Plan

A disaster management plan is an important part of organizational planning as it sets out the procedures and processes for lessening the severity of a potential emergency. Virtually every organization establishes an elaborate plan for disaster management to safeguard against unprecedented crises and their associated losses. My institutions (Hialeah Hospital) disaster contingency plan is designed based on the Hospital Emergency Incident Command Systems (HEIC). The primary objective of the program is to mitigate against the possible threats including natural, technological, and human-caused hazards. Some of the critical aspects of the disaster management process include protection of life before and after the occurrence of a hazard, protection of critical infrastructure enhancement of internal and external communication and promotion of safety awareness among all the stakeholders. The scheme involves different stakeholders including the hospital executive management, members of the community and the patients.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Order now

The chief executive officer has the responsibility of managing the continued execution of the organization's Disaster Emergency Management plan. The implementation relies on collaboration between different agents within the organization. Though the chief executive officer is the designee of the DEMP, he works together with the Safety Officer and the Environment of Care Committee to fast track its implementation. Annual evaluation of the plan is conducted to ensure that it proactively and efficiently to the situations at hand. The results of the assessment inform the nature of performance standards set for the future and serve as indications of possible pitfalls to avoid and opportunities to capitalize in ensuring a practical disaster plan. Specific roles and responsibilities within the scheme are assigned to members of the staff in each department. Nonetheless, within every department, the department head directors have the task of orienting the new recruits and confer on them specific responsibilities for disaster preparedness.

The Hialeah Hospital DEMP is activated through response to an actual emergency or a drill. Through such responses, it is possible to assess the efficiency of relevant aspects of the plan including communication, coordination, and effectiveness of the command structure. Training of personnel is particular to the roles that they plan within the continuum of the program. The responsibilities are set in a flexible way to make it easier for the personnel to develop a seamless interface with other entities while responding to a common hazard. The hospital has set department specific policies, procedures and frameworks which are important in developing targeted response to both the internal and external disasters that falls within the capacity of a given hospital section.

The DEMP is structured in such a flexible manner that in the event of any disaster strikes, the highest person in the hierarchy of command present at the time initiates its implementation. The stance means that the CEO, department heads or any other employee whose designation is higher in the chain of command can start the DEMP implementation. The immediate supervisor, nursing supervisor or administrator present can initiate the DEMP is applicable. The department heads provide the junior workers with the specific instructions for implementing their roles during the response to a given disaster.

During the response to disasters, the hospital maintains a continuous open challenge communication system but divulging any information to third parties including the media remains the preserve of the CEO, a member of the disaster response team or marketing director. Each department maintains a current telephone tree that links all the workers through which they are notified in the event of an emergency incident after the incident command staff activates the DEMP. During the evacuation, patients are to be relocated to safety from where continuous medical care is provided to avert any fatalities. List of the evacuated patient's is then generated and provided to the command centre. After the disaster is managed, the control centre establishes an extensive recovery process involving setting up the routine operations such as replacement of equipment, financial support, patient care support and staff support.