Emergency Response Teams Prepare for Potential Crisis
On March 9, members of the University Emergency Response Teams (EMT) participated in a tabletop workshop to exercise the FDU emergency response structure and to identify how the University will coordinate its response to a crisis among the FDU teams, internal departments, state and local agencies and other community partners. The exercise was facilitated by Marshall Johnson, vice president, Marsh Risk Consulting, and consisted of a hypothetical situation involving a pandemic influenza outbreak. In addition to the University EMT and Marsh, local public health officials participated in the exercise representing the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and local medical centers.
More and more attention is being given to the threat of a pandemic outbreak by federal, state and local officials because of the current information about avian influenza in Asia. The avian influenza strain is capable of causing severe disease in humans (similar to the 1918 pandemic), if it becomes readily transmissible through person-to-person contact. “We are but one airplane ride away from such a thing becoming a reality,” said Johnson. “This scenario was chosen because it can have very real and serious impacts on both campuses and the surrounding communities.”
The events unfolded in a series of “time-jumps” or “moves” that represented the passage of days, weeks or months. The scenario was designed to assess certain key decisions and issues that need to be addressed early in the course of the pandemic and took three and a half hours to complete.
The objectives of exposing the University Emergency Response Teams to a significant and complex event for the purpose of challenging the team membership to seek creative strategies, to assess the decision-making processes and to evaluate the operational effectiveness of the Fairleigh Dickinson University Emergency Operations Plans were met. “From my perspective, the exercise and follow-up discussions were outstanding,” said Neal Sturm, associate vice president, information resources/technology, chief information officer (Flor/Metro) and a member of the University Emergency Management Team.
Although the workshop was only a hypothetical situation, “it should be comforting to the entire FDU community to know that the leadership at FDU is taking response planning and crisis management to a new level. FDU is the first institution of higher education in New Jersey to contemplate such a crisis with such rigor,” said Sturm.
James Lebo, assistant University director of computing services/project management, was the University’s liaison with Marsh Risk Consulting and organized the workshop.
top of this page table of contents for this issue
April/May 2006
| · | Commencement Scheduled for May 16 |
| · | Gregory Olsen’s Generosity to Be Honored, Gildart/Haase School of Computer Sciences and Engineering to Be Dedicated |
| · | Middle States Re-accreditation Process Approaches Final Steps |
| · | Grant Seekers to Be Recognized |
| · | Strigl to Be Honored at Charter Day, PINNACLE Society to Induct Five Alumni |
| · | Faculty Authors Featured |
| · | Knights Win 2006 NCAA Women’s Bowling Championship |
| · | Summer Study Travels Abroad |
| · | Global Learning Priorities Announced |
| · | Antoinette Petrocelli Named to Board of Trustees |
| · | Emergency Response Teams Prepare for Potential Crisis |
| · | Faculty/Staff — Update, In Memoriam, Announcing, Welcome |
| · | College Happenings |
| · | Spotlight — Boroszvich, Coan, Kenny, Steiner |
| · | This & That |
| · | Photo Stories — Graduation Salute, Communication Career Day, Wellness Week. |
View text only for this complete issue.
Flor =
College at Florham, Madison, N.J.
Metro =
Metropolitan Campus, Teaneck, N.J.
Information Deadlines
The deadline for the next issue of Inside FDU on the Web is August 21.
Copy received after deadline will be included in the following issue. Every effort will be made to deal with late-breaking stories. Send information to: Carol Black, Publications, at H-DH3-14, fax to 201-692-7039 or e-mail to black@fdu.edu.
Inside FDU on the Web is published by the Office of Communications and Marketing. Newsletter Staff: Carol Black, editor; Mary Ann Bautista, Bill Blanchard, Mariellen Brown, Angelo Carfagna, Kim Cucinotta, Scott Giglio, Howard Gilman, Gretchen Johnson, William Kennedy, Lillian Lukac, Rebecca Maxon, Art Petrosemolo, Beth Reuse, Janette Shurdom.