Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Inclusion of Whole Community Concepts in the NIMS

I have described this before in other venues but it fits. Emergency managers should support the development of Community Orgnaizations Active in Disasters (COADs). By its title it is inclusive of all aspects of the community, hense "whole community" and can be adopted to fit the particulars of the jurisdiction it is created to serve. a COAD can be equally inclusive of the business sector, non profits of all kinds, all ...more »

Whenever we discuss the whole community concepts in emergency preparedness the community health centers are in the background. All organizations have an important role to play. Community Health Centers have the capability to treat most injuries in a disaster as statistics show most injuries are treatable in an outpatient setting. With licensed staff the Community Health Center can relieve the burden on the local hospital ...more »

Consider physical, programmatic, and communication access needs of community members with disabilities when organizing community meetings. Identify barriers to participation in emergency management meetings (e.g., lack of childcare or access to transportation, and time of the meeting) and provide solutions where feasible (e.g., provide childcare, arrange for the meeting to be held in a location accessible by public transportation, ...more »

NIMS works hand in hand with the National Response Framework (NRF). NIMS provides the template for the management of incidents, while the NRF provides the structure and mechanisms for national-level policy for incident management. Since NIMS and NRF both include what is defined as ‘WHOLE COMMUNITY’ this could be mentioned within a revised NIMS but a discussion appears to be unnecessary. What could be discussed and expounded ...more »

FEMA recommends that all households have a 72 hour emergency supply kit. This enables rescue teams to have a "time cushion" when responding to natural disasters like Katrina where the devastation is overwhelming, freeing up rescuers from having to focus on people that are merely trapped, and allowing them to find people who are injured or need attention immediately. Kits like The I.C.E. Cube Kit could/should be provided ...more »

I believe that NIMS document should not address specifics such as special needs community and how to handle or organize for this in an event. That is a tactical decision to be made under the incident command during a disaster.