UK Emergency Planning, Preparedness, and Response - Term Paper Example

UK emergency planning, preparedness and response Name: Tutor: Course: Date: Table of contents 1.0 Introduction 4 1.1 UK emergency planning and response: Key organizations 4 1.1.1 Category 1 responders 4 Figure 1: Category 1 responders 5 1.1.1.1 Emergency Services 5 1.1.1.2 Local Authorities 6 1.1.2 Category 2 responders 7 Figure 2: Category 2 responders 7 1.2 The voluntary sector 8 1.3 UK Emergency planning: conflict and deficiencies 8 1.4 Recommendations for improvement 10 1.5 Conclusion 11 References 13 List of figures 1.0 Introduction 4 1.1 UK emergency planning and response: Key organizations 4 1.1.1 Category 1 responders 4 Figure 1: Category 1 responders 5 1.1.1.1 Emergency Services 5 1.1.1.2 Local Authorities 6 1.1.2 Category 2 responders 7 Figure 2: Category 2 responders 7 1.2 The voluntary sector 8 1.3 UK Emergency planning: conflict and deficiencies 8 1.4 Recommendations for improvement 10 1.5 Conclusion 11 References 13 1.0 Introduction Emergency planning and responses in the United Kingdom (UK) is stipulated in the Civil Contingencies Act of 2004. The Act provides for actions and measures to be taken when life, property and safety of people living within the territory is at stake1. In the past, the UK has been vulnerable to both man-made and natural disasters such as industrial accidents, fires, heat wave, floods and terrorist attacks. There are various organizations involved in planning and implementation of safety procedures and actions where an adverse event occurs. These organizations are; category 1 responders, category 2 responders and the voluntary sector. However, planning and implementation of emergencies and responses in the country has come with some shortcomings and challenges2. This report examines the effectiveness of emergency planning and responses, potential deficiencies and conflict and makes recommendations for future planning. 1.1 UK emergency planning and response: Key organizations 1.1.1 Category 1 responders Category 1 responders in UK emergency planning and response include local authorities, emergency services and other agencies as shown in fig. 1 below. Figure 1: Category 1 responders As shown in the fig. 1 above, emergency services constitute the police, fire and rescue, ambulance, maritime and coastguard agency and the British Transport police. 1.1.1.1 Emergency Services Police: This unit is led by the Police Chief Commander and is responsible for providing leadership and directors in local disasters. They determine the strategy of response and coordinate inter-agency responses in instances such as road crashes, localized flooding and industrial accidents. For example, in the 2014 Somerset flooding that submerged over 200 homes, police cadets were involve in operations to restore life, provide supplies and offer general assistance to residents3. Fire and Rescue: They are involved in developing and coordinating advisory framework structure in large scale catastrophic incidences. For example, Fire & Rescue services in Gloucestershire were notified by the Cabinet Office to respond to the Gloucestershire floods of 20074. Up to date, the arrangements that the team used in the flooding incident are still used. Ambulance Services: This unit provides preliminary treatment such as First Aid and also liaises with the NHS trusts to deliver the injured to hospitals. Major ambulance service providers in the UK are St. John Ambulance and NHS ambulance. More than 400 people were treated and delivered to London hospitals in the 2005 train bombings5. The service also provides operational, tactical and strategic control by coordinating NHS responses in providing casualty assessment. Maritime and Coastguard Agency: Perform civil aviation duties and handles maritime pollution control. These include initiating and coordinating search and rescue in the Civil maritime. For example, in April of 2014, two people were saved by HM Coastguard by transferring to life boats6. Also, the 24-hour maritime services managed to recover a fishing boat in the Butt of Lewis and airlifted two fishermen to safety at Western Isles hospital7. British Transport Police: Play a huge role in civil protection through duty officers who deploy capabilities and detail callout procedures. They have own command and control rooms with specific control systems. The unit also plans rail transport issues and implements risk assessments. In London, there are two command vehicles with command capacities and control. 1.1.1.2 Local Authorities Local authorities comprise county councils, district and borough councils, and the unitary authorities. County and borough councils: They respond and prepare major emergencies affecting counties. The two-tier systems divide roles and responsibilities along the county and borough councils. They play significant roles in establishing primary humanitarian facilities, emergency recovery phase and coordination of welfare support to communities. Besides, they advise and assist voluntary organizations in formulating the Business Continuity Management (BCM). For example, Lancashire County provides plans, their maintenance and development so as to minimize impact8. Moreover, they work closely with health agencies and other relevant agencies in response and emergency planning. Unitary authorities: Some of these authorities include Blackburn and Blackpool. They have resilience forums and emergency planning teams that provide social care services. This group cooperates with local specialist teams, independent providers, NGOs, and NHS and support the ‘Gold’ centre in training and counseling9. Some of the leading social care service providers include voluntary agencies, General physicians and health visitors. During the Bosley factory incident in mid 2015, the resilience forum in Staffordshire was tasked with developing a list of affected persons. Moreover, a number of unitary authorities intervened in the Worcestershire floods of 2007. National Hospital Services (NHS) and other agencies: This body is tasked with providing specialist mental care, psychological support, delivery assistance and care to victims. The unit liaises with the Health Protection Agency (HPA) and offers specific information on the health of the residents or population. Their lead role is treatment of affected persons, decontamination of sites and prevention of disease spread. The unit comprises hospital trusts and primary care. For example, NHS contributed a lot in the treatment of more than 400 patients in the twin London railway bombing of 2005. On the other hand, other agencies involved are the health protection agency and the environmental agency. Together, they share information as well as working and cooperation with the voluntary sector. On a limited scale, environmental agency monitors air quality, river water abstraction and mitigates pollution10. Moreover, they exploit evidence-based practice in adopting recovery options and remediation against environmental contamination. 1.1.2 Category 2 responders Category 2 responders include the transport companies, utility companies and other agencies. As shown in fig. 2 below these responders are not at the heart of planning work but are involved in any incidents that affect the sector. Figure 2: Category 2 responders Category 2 responders share and cooperate with category 1 such as helicopters, fire and rescue, ambulances and hospitals and other category 2 responders. Utility companies consist of telecommunication, electricity, gas and water companies. Utility firms prepare list of help registers but share and cooperate with category 1 and 2 responders. Transport firms such as buses and trains provide faster evacuation of the population away to safety11. The infrastructure includes highways, harbors, ports, airports and railways. Other agencies include the strategic health authority and health and safety executive (HSE)12. They provide rules and regulations on disaster elimination in production activities and construction work. 1.2 The voluntary sector The voluntary sector in the UK emergency and response planning is robust and diverse. Major volunteers include the British Red Cross, St. John Ambulance, Salvation Army, charities, Victim Support Services, and CRUSE Bereavement Care. Civil Contingencies Act 2004 provided for the voluntary sector capabilities as local responders in emergency planning13. Bodies involved in preparing plans integrate operational and support activities that are to be undertaken by voluntary organizations and individual volunteers. Individual volunteers are members of established organizations such as faith community representatives, interpreters and Samaritans. As they deliver support to statutory authority, the voluntary sector meets the needs of individuals in crisis14. This group may require additional support when dealing from other responders in offering psycho-social support, information services and practical support. The voluntary sector conducts training and communication on information services while in medical care, they provide support ambulance services, first aid, emergency feeding, auxiliary role in hospitals and support to NHS in welfare15. Volunteers also provide emotional support, documentation, care of children and pets, refreshments, networks and websites and sign-posting. For example, flood volunteers of 2014 created a website in which people around the country could offer help and support the victims. With adequate skills and training, volunteer team offer practical individual care and emotional support to victims16. Search and rescue services provide supervision of other searchers and provision of loan equipment. 1.3 UK Emergency planning: conflict and deficiencies Civil Contingencies Act 2004 provides for category 1 and 2 responders to cooperate and collaborate in handling major accidents and disasters. Being a multi-agency, acting as a team achieves more than pursuing individualized actions to the emergency situation. Nevertheless, the emergency planning has not gone without criticism and challenges. The UK emergency system is more oriented towards emergency response instead of emergency planning and management of the affected persons17. UK emergency practitioners and the public have different expectations of which easily lead to disenchantment and mistrust. A ‘principal-agent problem’ is evident in allocating emergency planning funds and applying measures. The exchequer has been allocating minimal budget to disaster relief services which affects the collective ability to respond and cover a range of climatic hazards. Budgetary constraints lead to inefficiencies during a crisis, confusion and risk of resource shortages18. Communication within and across category 1 and 2 responders has been a challenge. For example, lack of radio capacity and technical problems limit communications between communications at the initial phase of the disaster19. As website jam when everyone is attempting an access, it becomes difficult to know risk of further harm, insurance claims and provision of services as water and electricity. Moreover, there is no standard language of communication across the agencies in large scale operations. For example, terms such as ‘tributaries’ and ‘confluence’ were used instead of layman words like road B or car park X20. During the 2005 London bombing, it became difficult to know the status of loved ones or injured persons because of interoperability of radios. In this case, London Metropolitan Police (MPS) had difficulty communicating with the British Transport Police and the staff of the London Underground. Utility companies are often unable to obtain full requirements of materials to combat disaster. Stringent import duties and high tariffs on purchasing of emergency equipments are blamed on bureaucratic procedures. Bid laws and ordering processes are cumbersome and constraining which make it difficult for responders to obtain what is needed in urgency21. Leadership failures pose coordination challenges. London police in 2005 railway bombing while restricting mobile phone network of London Ambulance services cut off the services of key responding agencies22. NHS trusts is under pressure with increasing population and frequencies of disasters which strains the existing services. Legal and structural issues such as privacy laws limit the agencies from sharing information among families and victims. This means that the Silver and Gold command can be overwhelmed by confusion, contradiction and inconsistencies. In the case of 2007 Somerset floods, contingency planning of issues were not anticipated with civil liberties being overlooked in the whole set up23. On the other hand, Fire and Rescue have had to consult with the local healthcare and self-help groups to get the identity of victims. However, the directions of the Cabinet Office overrides the data protection act stipulate in the European Human Rights legislation and Data Protection Act24. When the government does not provide preliminary briefings before the incident, it undermines accuracy and allows propagation of rumors. There are robust inconsistencies and fragmentation in UK emergency planning25. Agencies involved in decision making depend on the organizational culture and individuals and not based on socio-political and behavioral aspects. Meanwhile, poor mapping of vulnerabilities, understanding of location, and dependencies on critical infrastructure sends mixed signals to the central government26. For example, Fire and Rescue services can misinterpret risk assessments and warnings from other agencies out of which the general public cannot understand. While the London officials had good coordination in 2005 bombings, the coordination of Gloucestershire floods was poorly organized. 1.4 Recommendations for improvement a) Decentralization of emergency services: Gold command centers should be moved closer to communities as local remote control centers are enhanced to auto-detect other agencies involved. b) Training: The general public alongside category 1 and 2 responders should be involved in trainings such as use of common language and mobile infrastructure. The message should be more important than the gadgets being used which implies that traditional methods such as door-to-door calls, sirens, loudhailers and public address systems should be advised. c) Staffing emergency departments: NHS requires highly trained and skilled staff to handle emergencies. There should be safe and sustainable staffing, good governance of health services and better integration of services. d) Early involvement of responders: Multi-agencies are involved in various roles during emergencies. It is important to collaborate with multiple agencies to reduce destruction of property and death. This is possible when the roles of all participants are brought together. e) Community records: Lack of community based records of people makes it difficult to notify relatives and friends. Proper records of residents aids in logistics and obtaining alternative shelter for victims. Tracing affected persons in distress or affected members is possible in a closely knit community. f) Realistic plans and budget: Agencies and jurisdictions committed in planning under a reasonable budget are preferable. Resource ownership and authority should be based on lessons on past emergencies and how they were handled. Realistic plans undertaken by managers, politicians and supervisors should help in disaster management and implementing formal training. g) Government support: Local resilience forums should be supported and involved adequately in planning and emergency preparedness. These forums should cover all the regions of the UK such as Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales. h) Effective Communication: While the public is complacent on disaster preparedness, proper engagement and community empowerment through community-based disaster risk reduction should be done. Again, community resilience should ensure that use of communication should help the laymen to get over the radio. Also understood by all the responders are signage and other communication gadgets. 1.5 Conclusion This report examined the UK emergency planning and preparedness in responding to crisis and disasters. The UK government through the cabinet office, implements the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 in coordinating the contributions of the various agencies27. The key organizations involved in planning and response are category 1 and 2 and the voluntary sector. Category 1 responders in UK emergency planning and response include local authorities, emergency services and other agencies. Category 2 responders include the transport companies, utility companies and other agencies. On the other hand, the voluntary sector in the UK emergency and response planning is robust and diverse. Major volunteers include the British Red Cross, St. John Ambulance, Salvation Army, charities, Victim Support Services, and CRUSE Bereavement Care. However, the emergency departments are faced with challenges and limitations of communication, budget, legal and structural issues. The study recommends decentralization of emergency services, training, realistic plans and budget, proper community records and early involvement of responders. References 1. Civil Contingencies Act, 2004 http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/36/pdfs/ukpga_20040036_en.pdf. 2. Kapucu, N 2014, Emergency and Crisis Management in the United Kingdom: Disasters Experienced, Lessons Learned, and Recommendations for the Future. Department of Public Administration, University of Central Florida. 3. Cabinet Office, 2012, Revision to Emergency preparedness, p.51. 4. Cabinet Office, 2013b, Preparation and planning for emergencies: responsibilities of responder agencies and others. UK Government. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/preparation-and-planning-for-emergencies-responsibilities-of-responder-agencies-and-others. 5. Cabinet Office, 2013, Emergency Response and Recovery: Non statutory guidance accompanying the Civil Contingencies Act 2004. Civil Contingencies Secretariat, London. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/253488/Emergency_Response_and_Recovery_5th_edition_October_2013.pdf 6. Cabinet Office, 2013, Preparation and planning for emergencies: responsibilities of responder agencies and others. UK government. https://www.gov.uk/preparation-and-planning-for-emergencies-responsibilities-of-responder-agencies-and-others 7. London Ambulance Services, 2015, London bombings in 2005, NHS Trusts. http://www.londonambulance.nhs.uk/about_us/what_we_do/dealing_with_major_incidents/london_bombings_in_2005.aspx 8. London Ambulance Services, 2015, London Bombings in 2005, http://www.londonambulance.nhs.uk/about_us/what_we_do/dealing_with_major_incidents/london_bombings_in_2005.aspx. 9. Maritime Coastguard Agency, 2014 April 18, Pressure vessel capsizes at Bideford, https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pleasure-vessel-capsizes-at-bideford. 10. Lancashire County Council, 2014, Lancashire County Council – Emergency Planning service. http://www3.lancashire.gov.uk/corporate/web/?siteid=5615&pageid=30944. 11. Donelly, L & Malnick, E 2015, A&E crisis: soaring numbers of hospitals declare incidents. 6th January 2015. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/11327733/AandE-crisis-seven-hospitals-declare-major-incidents.html 12. Lee ACK, Challen K, Gardois P, Mackway-Jones K, Carley SD, Phillips W, Booth A, Walter D, Goodacre S, 2012, Emergency Planning in Health: Scoping study of the international literature, local information resources and key stakeholders. NIHR Service Delivery and Organization Programme. http://www.netscc.ac.uk/hsdr/files/project/SDO_FR_09-1005-03_V01.pdf. 13. Donahue, A & Tuohy, R 2006, Lessons We Don’t Learn: A Study of the Lessons of Disasters, Why We Repeat Them, and How We Can Learn Them, Homeland Security Affairs 2, Article 4 (July 2006). https://www.hsaj.org/articles/167. 14. Environment Agency, 2014, Volunteers contribution to flood resilience, Research report. http://evidence.environment-agency.gov.uk/FCERM/Libraries/FCERM_Project_Documents/Volunteers_extended_summary.sflb.ashx. 15. HM Government, 2014, A detailed guide to roles and responsibilities in humanitarian assistance, UK. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/61223/ha_rolesandresponsibilities.pdf. 16. http://media.aws.stwater.co.uk/upload/pdf/The_Final_Gloucester_2007_Report.pdf 17. National Audit Office, 2003, Facing the challenge: NHS Emergency Planning in England. Health and Social Care. http://www.nao.org.uk/report/facing-the-challenge-nhs-emergency-planning-in-england/ 18. Lee, ACK, Phillips, W Challen, K & Goodacre, S 2012, Emergency management in health: key issues and challenges in the UK. BMC Public Health. Vol. 12, pp. 884-892. 19. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3575315/ 20. Cabinet Office, 2013, Responding to emergencies: The UK central government response-Concept of Operations. Chapter 6: Arrangements in England. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/192425/CONOPs_incl_revised_chapter_24_Apr-13.pdf 21. Cabinet Office, 2011, Role of Voluntary Sector, Chapter 14, Revision to emergency preparedness. Civil Contingencies Act Enhancement Programme, https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/61037/Chapter-14-role-of-voluntary-sector-amends-10112011.pdf 22. Maritime and coastguard agency, 2015, Five airlifted from sea, January 20th 2015, Press office. http://hmcoastguard.blogspot.com/2015/01/five-airlifted-from-sea.html 23. HM Government 2014, UK floods 2014: Government response and recovery, February 14th 2014. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-floods-2014-government-response. 24. 24. Western Morning news, 2014, Police urge residents in Somerset village of Moorland to evacuate after water level rises by one metre. February 7th 2014. http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Police-urge-residents-Somerset-evacuate- water/story-20579878-detail/story.html 25. Cabinet Office, 2005, Civil Contingencies Act 2004: A short guide (revised). Civil Contingencies Secretariat. http://www.essex.gov.uk/Your-Council/Local-Government-Essex/Documents/15mayshortguide.pdf 26. London Ambulance Services, 2015, London bombings in 2005, NHS Trusts. http://www.londonambulance.nhs.uk/about_us/what_we_do/dealing_with_major_incidents/london_bombings_in_2005.aspx 27. Loffler, J & Klann, M 2009, Mobile Response: Humanitarian information management and systems, Springer-Verlag. P. 12-21. https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=zlnWcVztTwQC&pg=PA7&lpg=PA7&dq=category+2+responders+in+UK+floods&source=bl&ots=cFsvHwDZDX&sig=GCVzDaY7BAYxci85keYI6KHsSXo&hl=en&sa=X&ei=h26fVeSVIcmPyASsw4GoDQ&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=category%202%20responders%20in%20UK%20floods&f=false 28. Stron, KJ Eyerman, J 2008, Interagency Coordination: Lessons learned from the 2005 London Train Bombings. NIJ Journal, Vol. 3, no. 261, pp. 28-31. 29. https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/224088.pdf 30. Eide, AW Haugstveit, IM Halvorsrud, R Skjetne, JH Stiso, M 2013, Key challenges in multi-agency collaboration during large-scale emergency management, SINTEF ICT, Oslo, Norway. http://ceur-ws.org/Vol-953/paper5.pdf Read More