Sharing of experiences: a method to improve usefulness of emergency exercises

Abstract

International audienceThis study presents an exercise of a major train accident organised in SE Finland in the spring of 2002. A specific method was used to collect and share experiences among the participants. This method, originally developed for the analysis of real accidents and crisis, demonstrates a strong potential to improve the overall benefits of this kind of exercise. The special feature of this exercise was the cooperation between different authorities and voluntary groups. The authorities represented rescue services, police, healthcare, mental crisis care and social care. The voluntary groups included both first aid and mental crisis care groups. The success of an exercise depends on two main factors: motivation of people and similarity with real conditions. The challenge in learning lessons from an exercise is to collect and share efficiently facts, decisions and individual perceptions in order to reach two objectives: evaluation of the exercise by itself and evaluation of successes and failures of technology, people and organisation that would have a significant effect in real situations

Managing boundaries at the accident scene – a qualitative study of collaboration exercises

“…Regardless of the type of training conducted, scholars have argued that the aim should be to provide insights into the limitations of organisational behaviour and assumptions (Smith, 2004;Rykkja, 2010). Previous studies indicate that successful exercises can enhance perceptions of teamwork and response effectiveness (Perry, 2004;Lonka and Wybo, 2005).…”

“…Curiosity and the ability to see the other's perspective has been described as a facilitator for collaboration (Peterson and Perry, 1999). Lonka and Wybo (2005) previously pointed to collecting and sharing experiences as an important part of learning lessons from exercises. However, the staff tended to stick to their organisationspecific groups before, during and after the exercise.…”

A Tool to Assess Learning Processes Based on the Cooperation Principle

“…Exercises are common means in building experiences and competencies in interagency cooperation (Lonka and Wybo, 2005). In addition to uncover limitations in emergency plans, cooperation exercises contribute to establishing networks and personal relationships between emergency responders from different organisations (Kettl, 2003).…”

“…In addition to uncover limitations in emergency plans, cooperation exercises contribute to establishing networks and personal relationships between emergency responders from different organisations (Kettl, 2003). Training and exercises are also important tools for emergency responders to acquire and learn how to use necessary knowledge and skills (Lonka and Wybo, 2005, Sinclair et al, 2012, Sommer et al, 2013.…”

Making collaboration work – developing boundary work and boundary awareness in emergency exercises

“…Reflection on exercise scenarios (e.g. debriefings) and how this reflection is implemented are as important as the field-work activities for learning (Lonka and Wybo, 2005; Borodzicz and van Haperen, 2002; Sjöberg, 2014). Reflection is a well-established concept in the literature, typically related to experiences from actions and pondering on alternative courses of action (Schön, 1983; Weick and Sutcliffe, 2007).…”