The Differences between Hazards, Emergencies, and Disasters
Emergency management can be described as the process through which societies act in an attempt to lessen the susceptibility to hazards and management of disasters. Usually, its aim is not to eliminate the threats, but to reduce their impact. Through the creation of the plans to reduce the effect of these disasters, the risks of damaging assets and losing revenue are reduced among others. However, most people find it challenging to differentiate between emergency, disaster, and hazards in addition to stating the required steps involved in analyzing the three perils.
Disaster is a term that is used to describe the real occurrence of an event that results to indemnities that surpass the capability of a society or community to manage. Emergency, on the other hand, is quite related to disaster as it offers a description of the events that may lead to small damaged to society. Hazard recognizes the fact that individuals live with sophisticated man-made and natural processes that offer subject human beings to the possibility of changes in the natural position of these processes, which may result in harsh events with very negative outcomes.
How Emergency Managers Can Influence Policy Related to Hazards, Emergencies and Disasters
Various means exist for which emergency managers can influence the policies associated with emergencies, hazards and disasters considering that vary depending on the size of resources they bring. Reward and coercion, some of the ways in which emergency managers may influence the policies in the management process as they may end up imposing more positive or negative consequences that are not part of the action (Pearce, 2016). The two aspects may make such policies expensive to put in place or may generate hostility leading to reluctance active deception or failure to comply with various implementation issues.
Factors to Consider When Formulating a Policy Related to Hazards and Disasters
In the formulation of policies, emergency managers need to consider the policy proposal in order to avoid chances of policy makers viewing the matter as very huge and that there is no measure that can be taken. Managers will also need to consider involving all the stakeholders in order to have a chance of coming up with policies that pose higher chances of being implemented and these may lead to incorporating weak proponents (Boyce, Bartolo & Paterson, 2013). The local political context is also a matter for consideration in the formulation process like providing a clear definition of the targeted community or group.
Hazard and vulnerability analysis begins with the step of identifying the various kinds that exist and classifying them into certain categories based on aspects like natural events, which is followed by the step of investigating their seasonality. During this second step, the frequency of the hazards and vulnerabilities occurring is indicated against each grouping with the example of the seasons that hazards like monsoon rains occur. The third step to locate or pin point the regions within the community that the hazard is most likely to take place in addition to calculating the probabilities of the identified hazards and vulnerabilities taking place.
References
Boyce, S. A., Bartolo, D. C. C., & Paterson, H. M. (2013). Subspecialist emergency management of diverticulitis is associated with reduced mortality and fewer stomas. Colorectal Disease, 15(4), 442-447.
Pearce, T. (2016). Building public confidence in emergency management. Journal Of Business Continuity & Emergency Planning,9(3), 218-227.
