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Emergency Management, Emergency Services, & Disaster Spox

Final FEMA review of the new social media courses #NDPTC

Posted on August 14, 2015 by rusnivek

I popped back-to-back-to-back social media classes last week in Sacramento, California.

Participants from all over the west coast attended. Specifically for Thursday and Friday, FEMA reviewed our new curriculum courses. Yep, straight up evaluation. Not going to lie, I was pretty nervous.

Ongoing for course design, I will make a few more additions/changes before courses are sent to the National Training and Exercise Division (NTED) for certification. Hoping for final approval in November 2015. Hope to hear the magical words “Federally published” as my course is listed in the DHS / FEMA Training catalog. Whoa Nellie!

For the classes? We had great interaction from all participants.

Solid discussions during the breakout sessions included professionals from all Emergency Support Functions (ESFs) as well as experts from the National Weather Service (NWS), Critical Infrastructure, and Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters (VOADs), etc… Diverse groups make for the best discussions for sure!

As part of our continued efforts in Emergency Management, it is imperative that we address issues from the All-Hazards approach and incorporate the support of our stakeholders in solutions.

With heavy discussion, class participants had a great time engaging with others and using tools/techniques that are specific to the Preparedness, Response, Recovery, and Mitigation Directorates. Obviously, I showcased the importance of a good Public Information Officer (PIO) / Public Affairs Officer (PAO) and how their interaction in the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) or the Joint Information Center/System (JIC/JIS) is imperative to a successful emergency or disaster.

Also, starting to build an online learning library that can be easily accessed from anywhere using the #NDPTC is always good reference. Free. My favorite F-word.

Special mahalos to fellow Instructors Cheryl and MaryJo in the delivery of these courses.

Also the solid smiles from fellow #SMEM Jennifer and Scott was crucial support on this delivery.

Glad to be working with partners like the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), National Domestic Preparedness Consortium (NDPC), and the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center (NDPTC). Truly great to see everyone working collaboratively. Thanks to the Sacramento County Emergency Management for hosting these courses.

Looking forward to the next class at the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) conference in Clark County, Nevada. See you there!

@rusnivek

Are you violating Facebook’s Terms of Service? Safety-PIO-SM-15-004

Posted on July 31, 2015 by rusnivek

15-004: Are you violating Facebook’s Terms of Service?
Agency: Various public safety agencies	Topic(s): Facebook organization page
Date: 07-31-15	Platform: Facebook

Facebook has a wide audience and many public safety agencies have taken to Facebook to promote their efforts. However, many agencies have created the wrong type of account on Facebook.

By creating your agency’s page as a person on Facebook, you are violating Facebook’s terms of service. And if you are going to ask, Facebook administration has the right to immediately delete everything. Yikes.

By registering your agency as an ORGANIZATIONAL PAGE, you can take advantage of Facebook’s analytics. This information is incredibly valuable as you evaluate who, what, at what time, and most importantly the how and why they are searching/visiting your agency’s organizational page.

Facebook readily asks if you know people and displays their basic account information. Facebook’s goal is to increase your networks by showcasing people that are similar to you. If you happen to see one of your neighboring public safety agencies who may have incorrectly registered a Facebook personal account, take the time to inform them on changing their account from a personal page to an organizational page.

Likes? As an organization, can I like other pages? Yes, as an organizational page, you can like other agencies too. Through Facebook likes, you can showcase to your trusted network of similar public safety agencies.

Remember, social media is about how you can amplify your networks and positively engage your constituents. We are constantly strengthening our relationships with similar groups – all in the name of safety.

Look, we all need to be good stewards of our public safety brand. All Emergency Support Functions (ESFs) need to constantly support each other and help agencies who need some social media guidance.

By double checking your agency and your partner agencies.

You can be compliant with Facebook’s Terms of Service agreement.
You can ascertain detailed visitor demographics free from Facebook’s organizational analytical information.

Time is valuable, so post good stuff.

@rusnivek

To download the one-pager, click on the link here: Safety-PIO-SM-15-004-PersonalOrOrganizationalOnFacebook

JIS – JIC planning class for Tribal State and local PIOs

Posted on July 17, 2015 by rusnivek

A fine day to teach the Ohio Emergency Management Agency’s JIS / JIC Planning for Tribal, State, and Local PIOs (G-291) course in Medina County!

A classic start with The Who.

One of the big points emphasized in this class is the differences between a Joint Information Center (JIC) and a Joint Information System (JIS). Both have merits in daily operations and each have strengths and weaknesses in disaster operations.

Sometimes PIOs don’t understand that a JIC or JIS activation is just like a normal activation. If you can’t figure out the differences between the two, take the class from those who have actually worked a JIC or a JIS.

On Tuesday/Wednesday in the Basic Public Information Officers’ Course (G-290), we talked about training and readiness efforts for any PIO. Go Kits were a hot button topic as everyone’s PIO kit would most likely be different. Resource manuals are great to have, but difficult to keep updated. Just maintaining a PIO contact list is a tedious task.

Much discussion about food in the kit. This was obviously NOT a good example of what you should be eating during an JIC activation.

Prob not the best lunch.

Healthy body = Healthy mind. Period.

As the day progressed, we facilitated several in-depth discussions on teamwork, joint efforts in responses as well as some pre-scripted messages that can be used by everyone. Planning now will reduce the amount of white hair during an incident.

Establish relationships now with local health departments, local and regional hospitals, local Hazardous Materials (HAZMAT) Teams, Special Technical Rescue Teams. Easily rely on your state staff and resources to support your actions. A great wealth of information is available to bring to the table. Just establish that connection before that awkward 0300 hit.

Additionally, tapping into local resources from other Federal Agencies like the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives(ATF), National Weather Service (NWS), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs Border Patrol (CBP), National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), etc…so many options to establish relationships!

“Building relationships now can only increase our response effectiveness during a disaster.” – K. Sur

Looking outside government agencies, public and private partnerships can support our safety and response initiatives – so we need to make a concerted effort to make those connections now. Build relationships before a disaster!

Sur and Mo!

So how can you bring all these resources together? Consider these actions to explore in your jurisdiction:

Train. Train. Train.
Open discussions with various providers.
Invite your all-hazards partners to meetings.
Meet regularly. Maintain contact.
Take classes together.
Share resource lists and contacts.
Support each other during operations.
Review After Action Reviews / Improvement Plans (AARs/IPs) together.

And if you were wondering, class participants did well on their post-tests.

Psssst…the answer is “C” #not

We had a great time teaching this week. Much thanks to the Medina County Emergency Management Agency and EM Director Christine Fozio for their hospitality. Super fun time.

So much ducking fun (duck face reference)

Special thanks to the Ohio Emergency Management Agency for sponsoring this all-hazards class for our partners in public safety.

(L to R): PIO Instructor Kevin Sur, Medina County Emergency Management Director Christine Fozio, and PIO Instructor Monique Witherspoon.

If you are looking to attend OEMA’s free PIO courses:

Public Information Officers Awareness course (G-289)
Basic Public Information Officers’ course (G-290)
JIS / JIC Planning for Tribal, State, and Local PIOs course (G-291)

**coordinate through OEMA State Training Officer Susan Traylor.

As always, I’m looking forward to the JIC / JIS activation calls. I am excited for these new PIOs to put their new acquired PIO skillz in place. And yes, I said skillz with a Z.

Time is short so do good stuff!

@rusnivek

Early morning meeting with the Director of National Integration #WHSMEM #SURINDC

Posted on July 29, 2014 by rusnivek

Early start today meeting with Doc Lumpkins who is the Director of National Integration Center for DHS/FEMA.

Numerous points discussed w/ the group:

Large discussion based on NIMS typing of IT teams
Increasing trust with public and private partnerships
Clear NIMS/ICS standards for use in the EOC standardization (like ICS vs hybrid vs non-compliant)
Real social media use for PIOs in the JIC/JIS for actionable information
The broad impact of net neutrality
VOST as a deployable asset
Delivery of classes for RCPT and functional needs population
States who have ESFs which do not match up with standards established by DHS/FEMA (aka rogue ESFs)
Advanced resource typing
CPG and committees to help guide CPG review
Whole communities approach through framework
Private sector approach/interactions and their use of NIMS
Integration of planning across various levels and agencies

Doc’s team engaged our questions and honestly answered several burning issues. As the week continues, Doc informed us that more materials were going to be released from the National Integration Center and National Protection Framework shortly for review. EXCELLENT!!!

Just like at the NEMA conferences, UASI conferences, etc…I really enjoy meeting with Doc Lumpkins. He provides great insight and he is HILARIOUS!

Overall, by engaging with the core prominent Social Media in Emergency Management peeps, Doc Lumpkins and the rest of the National Integration team can continue to incorporate real and pressing issues into the new doctrine.

Thanks again for the meeting Doc!

Now my ride just arrived, a black suburban, headed for the White House!

@rusnivek