Community Nursing, Task 4

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Running Head: TASK 4, EMERGENCY RESPONSE Task 4, Emergency Response Mary Louise Mattas, RN Western Governors University HAT1: Community Health Nursing June 2, 2012 During a man-made or natural disaster it is imperative that major public health personnel respond to the incident. Each responder has an important role and coordination of these roles is crucial to the success and organization of the operation. A Public Health Incident Command System must be established rapidly and functions as the nucleus of the operation. The Incident Command System will define roles and responsibilities of key public health personnel. Key roles within the Public Health Incident Command System are the Incident Commander, Public Information Officer, Liaison Officer, Operations Section Chief, Planning Section Chief, Logistics Section Chief and Finance/Administration Section Chief and Public Health Group including the Community Health Nurse. The Incident Commander (IC) is responsible for directing and controlling resources (OSHA, n. d.). The IC is responsible for all aspects of the incident including briefing the team on the extent of the disaster, establishing an Incident Command Center, and making duty assignments by selecting positions based on the training and experience of the individuals that respond to the incident, establish priorities and set objectives for the incident (OSHA, n. d.). According to the University of Minnesota (UMN) (2012), the Public Information Officer (PIO) is responsible for ensuring that the public and public health staff are kept informed by providing a consistent message from the agency. The PIO must be able to communicate effectively and clearly, as well as have knowledge of principles of risk communications (UMN, 2012). A person with good communication skills and community relations is ideal for the position of Liaison Officer. The

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