CHHS offers a comprehensive suite of planning, assessment, training, and advisory services tailored to the needs of government agencies, healthcare systems, nonprofits, and private-sector organizations.
Solutions and Services
Develop comprehensive plans, procedures, and coordination frameworks that enable organizations to effectively prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies and disasters.
- Crisis Management Plans: the communications and decision-making component of an overall Business Continuity Plan (BCP). A thorough Crisis Management Plan facilitates rapid communication to ensure overall safety to both internal and external stakeholders.
- Emergency Operations Plans (EOPs): a document which outlines how an organization and/or facility will respond to an emergency. The EOP sets guidelines to manage a disaster in an effective, efficient, and timely manner.
- Hospital Surge Planning: Medical surge capacity refers to the ability to evaluate and care for a markedly increased volume of patients—one that challenges or exceeds normal operating capacity.
- Interoperable Communications: the ability of emergency responders and government personnel to communicate and share voice and data information seamlessly.
- Resource Management Plans: addresses the type, quantity and location of resources that an agency would require to execute an effective emergency response. It also includes gaps, capabilities, and cost and procurement information
Strengthen organizational resilience by ensuring critical operations, services, and functions can continue and recover quickly during disruptive events.
- Continuity of Operations (COOP) and Continuity of Government (COG) Plans: ensures that organizations are able to continue the performance of essential functions under a broad range of circumstances.
- Cyber Incident Response Plans: goes beyond the technical response to a cyber incident and outlines all roles and responsibilities within an entire organization during and after a cyber event. The plan includes strategic, legal, regulatory, and policy considerations, as well as coordination and communication procedures.
- Hazard Mitigation Plans: the process used by organizations to understand risks from natural and man-made hazards and develop long-term strategies to reduce the impacts of disasters on people, property, and the environment.
Identify hazards, vulnerabilities, and capability gaps to help organizations prioritize investments and improve overall preparedness and response effectiveness.
- Gap Analyses: designed is to improve operational readiness and reduce disaster impacts by identifying and reducing or eliminating shortfalls that exist between estimated requirements, standards, and performance measures and the actual response and short-term recovery capabilities.
- Risk Assessments: a process to identify potential hazards and analyze what could happen if a hazard occurs.
Establish a clear vision, priorities, and roadmap that align emergency management initiatives with organizational goals, resources, and long-term resilience objectives.
- Strategic Planning: an organization’s process of defining its emergency management strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy.
Provide guidance and policy resources that help organizations understand authorities, responsibilities, and compliance considerations before, during, and after emergencies.
- Legal Handbooks: Emergency-centric legal handbooks are effective resources which cover topics such as executive emergency powers, governmental liability and immunity, and subject areas like public health and environmental safety.
Training and Exercise Development, Facilitation and Evaluation
CHHS supports organizations by analyzing training needs, developing customized training curricula, facilitating sessions, and creating multi-year training and exercise plans. We design and evaluate HSEEP-compliant exercises to test plans, identify strengths and gaps, and develop After-Action Reports and Improvement Plans, and we can assist with implementing improvements based on exercise outcomes.
Contact us at chhs@umaryland.edu to discuss scheduling and pricing.
Exercises
- Drills
- Workshops
- Seminars
- Table-Top Exercises
- Functional Exercises
- Full-Scale Exercises
In addition to customized training and exercises, CHHS is pleased to offer the following training programs to organizations of all sizes.
Additional Trainings
Continuity of Operations (COOP)
This two-day, management-level training course is designed to provide students with an interactive and comprehensive understanding of how a COOP program is developed, maintained, and exercised. The curriculum is designed to encourage collaborative discussion, problem solving, and real-world experiences. There are 11 substantive modules, each of which focuses upon a specific aspect of COOP, including: essential functions, human capital management, succession management, vital records and equipment, communications, alternate facilities, reconstitution, devolution, and training and exercise. The course can be specifically tailored to the unique needs and requirements of the host agency or jurisdiction.
ICS and NIMS Courses
CHHS offers the following FEMA ICS and NIMS training in-person for organizations that want a live instructor who can bring real-world context to the material. Each of these can be taught on their own or paired together, based on organizational priorities. At the end of each training session, CHHS instructors will work with participants to create FEMA student IDs, login, and complete the online assessment to receive FEMA credit.
Time: about 2 hours
ICS 100, Introduction to the Incident Command System, introduces the Incident Command System (ICS) and provides the foundation for higher level ICS training. This course describes the history, features and principles, and organizational structure of the Incident Command System. It also explains the relationship between ICS and the National Incident Management System (NIMS). The Emergency Management Institute developed its ICS courses collaboratively with:
- National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG)
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
- United States Fire Administration’s National Fire Programs Branch
Time: about 4 hours
IS200, Basic Incident Command System for Initial Response, reviews the Incident Command System (ICS), provides the context for ICS within initial response, and supports higher level ICS training. This course provides training on, and resources for, personnel who are likely to assume a supervisory position within ICS.
The Emergency Management Institute developed its ICS courses collaboratively with:
- National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG)
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
- United State Fire Administration's National Fire Programs Branch
Time: about 3.5 hours
This course provides an overview of the National Incident Management System (NIMS). The National Incident Management System defines the comprehensive approach guiding the whole community - all levels of government, nongovernmental organizations (NGO), and the private sector - to work together seamlessly to prevent, protect against, mitigate, respond to, and recover from the effects of incidents. The course provides learners with a basic understanding of NIMS concepts, principles, and components.
Time: about 3 hours
The goal of the IS-0800.d, National Response Framework, An Introduction, is to provide guidance for the whole community. Within this broad audience, the National Response Framework focuses especially on those who are involved in delivering and applying the response core capabilities, including:
- Private sector partners
- Non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
- Government officials
- Community leaders
- Emergency management practitioners
- First responders
Interested in working with us?
Don’t see what you’re looking for? Reach out to us at chhs@umaryland.edu to discuss your specific needs.
Contact
Center for Cyber, Health, and Hazard Strategies (CHHS)
CHHS is funded primarily by government grants. Without steady financial support, CHHS would not be able to provide the services that make our communities safer.
Thank you.
