Ready, Willing, and Able: A Framework for Improving the Public Health Emergency Preparedness System

Abstract

<jats:title>ABSTRACT</jats:title><jats:p>Every society is exposed periodically to catastrophes and public health emergencies that are broad in scale. Too often, these experiences reveal major deficits in the quality of emergency response. A critical barrier to achieving preparedness for high-quality, system-based emergency response is the absence of a universal framework and common language to guide the pursuit of that goal. We describe a simple but comprehensive framework to encourage a focused conversation to improve preparedness for the benefit of individuals, families, organizations, communities, and society as a whole. We propose that constructs associated with the well-known expression “ready, willing, and able” represent necessary and sufficient elements for a standardized approach to ensure high-quality emergency response across the disparate entities that make up the public health emergency preparedness system. The “ready, willing, and able” constructs are described and specific applications are offered to illustrate the broad applicability and heuristic value of the model. Finally, prospective steps are outlined for initiating and advancing a dialogue that may directly lead to or inform already existing efforts to develop quality standards, measures, guidance, and (potentially) a national accreditation program.</jats:p><jats:p>(<jats:italic>Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness</jats:italic>. 2010;4:161-168)</jats:p>

Mass fatality preparedness among medical examiners/coroners in the United States: a cross-sectional study

“…More complex study designs and the inclusion of other variables not studied here, such as the funding available for MFI planning at the jurisdictional level and MFI training and knowledge of the ME/C, are needed in order to better characterize the factors related to preparedness. Our three-tiered approach to measuring preparedness contrasts with other models for systems-level preparedness, which have been suggested, such as the Ready, Willing, and Able framework developed by McCabe and colleagues [44]. Our approach incorporates many of their constructs, especially "Ability", which is reflected in our operational capabilities measure.…”

Determinants of emergency response willingness in the local public health workforce by jurisdictional and scenario patterns: a cross-sectional survey

“…Local public health agencies have a median staff size of 13 [22], which emphasizes the imperative that all workers are ready, willing, and able to respond to a public health emergency if needed [6]. The diminishing numbers of U.S. public health workers [14] reinforce the need to ensure that LHD employees are sufficiently committed to responding during an emergency.…”

“…Studies have pointed to WTR as a function of the interplay between perceptions of threat and efficacy toward a hazard [4,5]. Research has also identified WTR as a requisite for quality in public health systems' response efforts, as response willingness is fundamental to response capacity [6]. Examples in which low WTR had the potential to hinder public health and healthcare response to an infectious disease outbreak have been reported [4,7-11].…”

Psychological First-Aid Training for Paraprofessionals: A Systems-Based Model for Enhancing Capacity of Rural Emergency Responses

“…24 The specific questions and operational criteria for the three constructs in the order they evolved and were assessed were: 24 The specific questions and operational criteria for the three constructs in the order they evolved and were assessed were: …”