Pmc18885 Unmanned Systems Mhe509 Discussion Resp
Discussion Requirements
A substantive comment should be approximately 300 words or more for each response (A total of 1 response).
Read the initial comments posted by your classmates and reflect upon them.
Before writing your comments:
- Review the Discussion grading rubric to see what is expected for an excellent discussion, in order to earn full credit.
- Review some resources to help you synthesize, such as the following:
Sullivan, J. (2011). Strategies for Synthesis Writing. Retrieved from http://www.findingdulcinea.com/features/edu/Strategies-for-Synthesis-Writing.html
NOTE: You are required to cite sources and include a reference list for the second post if it is simply your opinion. However, if your opinion is based on facts (as it should be), it is good practice to strengthen your position by citing sources.
Be sure to meet all of the criteria in the rubric, as noted in the instructions above.
Third post for each module discussion:
Read the initial and secondary comments posted by your classmates and reflect upon them.
Directly respond to at least one classmate in a way that extends meaningful discussions, adds new information, and/or offers alternative perspectives.
MY POST
DO NOT RESPOND
Classmates and Professor,
COVID-19 Healthcare Emergency in the United States
Covid-19 pandemic is an emergency that has hit the United States. The healthcare department has significantly been affected and the challenges faced have helped define necessary actions for healthcare disaster management. The unprecedented occurrence of the pandemic has positioned healthcare practitioners, patients, and families at the risk of contracting the virus. Healthcare workers have been provided with safety equipment to ensure minimal direct contact cases with the virus.
As a healthcare emergency disaster, poor communication has hampered essential operations. In the early stages of the pandemic, the government ignored the threats posed by the virus, and vital restrictions were ignored. This was after the health department in the United States reported the possibility of the virus, but much was not done to ensure that the threat was contained within its initial stages. With reports of its origin from China, the health and security departments ought to have reacted quickly and assess the danger and possible means of preventing its spread across the country (Lange et al., 2020). However, with poor communication among essential departments, including security and healthcare units, the virus began to spread from one state to another.
In 2020, the U.S faced a spike of Covid-19 infections, with high death rates being recorded daily. At some time, the country had the highest number of deaths recorded daily compared to other parts of the world. The health system faced immense pressure, and it was stretched beyond its capacity. So far, the number of deaths recorded in the country is an average of 600,147, with 33,715,951 virus cases. The Novel Coronavirus has caused a substantial disruption to the American economy (Hartnett et al., 2020). With lockdowns on central states, a majority of Americans have had to work at home where various businesses have been temporarily closed for the period the pandemic was on a spike. Lawmakers have enacted significant bills costing an upward of $ 5.3 trillion to assist handle the economic burdens on businesses and families. $174 billion has been set aside to enhance Covid-19 testing, vaccination, and contact tracing. In March 2020, $8.3 billion was set aside for vaccine research and funding health agencies (Chudik et al., 2020).
An action that could have prevented the problems above would be the containment of U.S borders the moment the initial Covid-19 infections were reported. This could have allowed the healthcare department to carry out efficient contact tracing while the number of conditions was minimum. This was feasible with the collaboration of state agencies such as the security and immigration departments. Since it had been established that the virus was transmitted through direct contact with a person, surface, and airborne transmission, public sensitizations ought to have been carried out at the moment, ensuring that citizens observed the set healthcare guidelines.
Pedro
References
Chudik, A., Mohaddes, K., Pesaran, M. H., Raissi, M., & Rebucci, A. (2020, October 20). Economic consequences of Covid-19: a counterfactual multi-country analysis. Retrieved from The Forum ERF Policy Portal: https://theforum.erf.org.eg/2020/10/20/economic-co…
Hartnett, K. P., Kite-Powell, A., DeVies, J., Coletta, M. A., Boehmer, T. K., Adjemian, J., & Gundlapalli, A. V. (2020, June 2020). Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Emergency Department Visits—United States, January 1, 2019–May 30, 2020. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 69(23), 699.
Lange, S. J., Ritchey, M. D., Goodman, A. B., Dias, T., Twentyman, E., Fuld, J., … & Yang, Q. (2020, June 26). Potential indirect effects of the COVID‐19 pandemic on use of emergency departments for acute life‐threatening conditions—United States, January–May 2020. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 69(25), 795-800.
RESPONSE 1
Classmates and Professor,
In October 2017, the State of California encountered the most destructive wildfire in state history. The Tubbs wildfire destroyed approximately 5,200 homes and structures as it started north of Santa Rosa, California before traveling south into the city (Watkins, Et. Al., 2017). “One resident said that by the time the first emergency alert came, the flames were already marching toward his house, leaving just minutes to escape” (Watkins, Et. Al., 2017). Twenty-five lives were lost as a result of this wildfire.
So what made this the most destructive wildfire in California history? Communication failure. Lucas (2018) displays a quote from a police officer in Sebastopol, California: “People didn’t die from the smoke. People didn’t die from the fire. People died because they didn’t know something was coming”. Following the wildfire, the Sonoma County, California disaster communications plan was independently assessed and the conclusion was that procedures for using alert and warning capabilities were uncoordinated, included gaps, overlaps, and redundancies (Lucas, 2018).
Costs
~$8.7 Billion in damages (Facts + Statistics: Wildfires)
25 killed
$100 Million in Suppression operations (Ortiz, 2018)
$3.3 Billion in Insured Losses (Jergler, 2017)
10,016 Partial Residence Losses (Jergler, 2017)
4,712 Total Residential Losses (Jergler, 2017)
728 Partial and Total Commercial Losses (Jergler, 2017)
3.200 Personal Auto Losses (Jergler, 2017)
91 Commercial Auto Losses (Jergler, 2017)
153 Agricultural Equipment Losses (Jergler, 2017)
111 Water Craft Losses (Jergler, 2017)
Due to the unpredictable nature of a wildfire, it is unlikely that total damages to property would have been prevented due to a single action; however, some property and many lives could have been saved if proper communication of warning information had been distributed promptly. The aforementioned report found that alert operators did not trust their ability to issue warnings because of their lack of training; incident commanders did not trust the communication system to properly alert residents (Lucas, 2018).
Implementing a quick “fix” is not a feasible solution for this type of communication failure. Effectively correcting the issue would take many months – it would include rigorous training, drills, and exercises; plans and procedure revision; multiple assessments (organizational, communication system, etc.); and it would be costly. Communication issues resonate deep within an organization and will take a long time to figure out the exact issues and then adequately eliminate the issues and demonstrate proper implementation.
Jason
References
Facts + statistics: Wildfires. (n.d.). Insurance Information Institute. https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-wildfires
Jergler, D. (2017, October 31). Insured losses from California wildfires now at $3.3 billion. Insurance Journal. https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/west/2017/10/31/469835.htm
Lucas, J. (2018, March 28). California’s disaster communication plan failed during deadly wildfires. Rave Mobile Safety. https://www.ravemobilesafety.com/blog/californias-disaster-communication-plan
Ortiz, J. L. (2018, July 31). After the fire comes the bill: The rising cost of fighting California blazes. USA TODAY. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/07/31/california-suppression-costs-ferguson-carr-fires/876767002/
Watkins, D., Griggs, T., Lee, J. C., Park, H., Singhvi, A., Wallace, T., & Ward, J. (2017, October 21). How California’s most destructive wildfire spread, hour by hour. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/10/21/us/california-fire-damage-map.html
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Module 4 – Background
PRIVATE SECTOR PARTNERSHIPS
Required Reading
Bier, D., & Feeney, M. (2018). Drones on the border: Efficacy and privacy implications. CATO Institute. Retrieved from https://www.cato.org/publications/immigration-rese…
Microsoft Excel Tutorial for Beginners #1 – Overview. Retrieved from
National Incident Management System, 3rd. ed. (2017), FEMA, Department of Homeland Security. Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/1508151197…
Shiu-Thornton et al. (2007). Disaster preparedness for limited English proficient communities: Medical Interpreters as cultural brokers and gatekeepers. Public Health Reports, 122(4), 466-471. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC18885…
Unmanned systems integrated roadmap FY2011 – 2036 (2011). FAS.org. Retrieved from https://fas.org/irp/program/collect/usroadmap2011….
Required Video
Just in Time Disaster Training Library. [nfrdstf]. (2013, September 25). Radiological terrorism: Training for hospital clinicians [Video file]. Retrieved from
Required Websites
California Earthquake Program. http://assembly.state.ny.us/comm/Cat_Nat_Disaster/…
Disaster Emergency Communications Division, FEMA: https://www.fema.gov/disaster-emergency-communicat…
FEMA: National Response Framework.https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/document…
Preparing Hospitals for Disasters: Emergency Operations Plan (EOP).
http://www.calhospitalprepare.org/emergency-operat…
Radiological dispersal devices (RDDs). Radiation Emergency Medical Management, HHS.
https://www.remm.nlm.gov/rdd.htm