This week we had a guest speaker who does a lot of work with crisis management at a local hospital. Her presentation was extremely interesting and informative and it taught me a lot about the importance of being prepared for certain emergency situations. Crisis management is not something I really thought about before and I didn't realize how prepared hospitals need to be. This year with all of the natural disasters and tragedies that have happened have made hospitals think about their crisis management plans more than they have in the past. There is a lot at stake in hospitals since they have such a huge population of unhealthy people that are responsible for if a disaster situation were to arise.
Our guest speaker told us a little bit of the protocols that she needs to follow when a disaster is occurring in order to ensure that everybody on the senior leadership team is aware of what is going on. Part of being a manager is knowing how to react in those situations and be able to act under pressure and lead the people around you. Making sure that you are fully prepared and aware of what the organization's protocols are for those types of situations is extremely important. Being a successful leader in those situations requires you to remain calm and be able to guide the people around you in a collected manner.
She is the type of leader you would want running your public affairs in a crisis. It is critical to practice for these events.
ReplyDeleteThere is a reason military boot camp (and most other military hands-on training) contains elements of stress, handling emergencies, etc. It's because they do happen from time to time, and managing them in a controlled training environment gives you the confidence and "muscle memory" to effectively manage it in the real world. Things such as supplies, communication, leadership roles, back-up plans, etc., are crucial to getting through a crisis.
ReplyDeleteMay I recommend two free online courses offered by FEMA? Having these two course completions on your resume might open some doors in the future:
https://training.fema.gov/is/courseoverview.aspx?code=IS-100.HCb
and
https://training.fema.gov/is/courseoverview.aspx?code=IS-200.HCa
Hi Nicole,
ReplyDeleteCrisis management, or "emergency management" as we call it in my organization, is so huge. From planning for natural disasters like hurricanes to mass casualty events, there needs to not only be a policy and procedure in place, but employees must know what to do, and who to follow, in a crisis. Managers hold much of this responsibility and must educate themselves on what to do in various situations.
A great book about how Memorial Hospital fared in Hurricane Katrina (it was disastrous) is "Five Days at Memorial." It is a long read, but very fascinating, and has won awards. Perhaps you may want to check it out over winter break!