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View EMAP Slides (1 - 24) View Govt. Slides (1 - 5) IAEM Website |
Implications for Government EM Programs Transcript of Live Chat One of the stated purposes of the standard is to provide a criteria for assessing current programs. At the same time that the NFPA 1600 standard was going through the revision process, the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) was investigating the feasibility of the development of a national Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP). Subsequently, NEMA decided to adopt NFPA 1600 as the basis of the program. The International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM), has also been involved with the NFPA 1600 revision and EMAP development. This session will acquaint you with:
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Development of EMAP - The EMAP initiative had its roots in the drafting and presenting of a White Paper on the concept of state accreditation by Eric Tolbert, Director of the North Carolina Division of Emergency Management, at the 1997 NEMA Annual Conference. The White Paper was well received by the NEMA membership as an initiative whose time had come. In subsequent meetings as accreditation was discussed, often in concert with the need for a national emergency management standard, the NEMA membership was consistent and unanimous in its support for the development of an accreditation program. The next step was to investigate the feasibility of the idea and an Accreditation Report presented to NEMA September 1998, recommended phasing in a program over a period of seven years. During July 1999, North Carolina Division of Emergency Management hosted a NEMA Workshop to further develop the process and format for an EMAP standard (see section below) using the NFPA 1600 draft and the Capability Assessment for Readiness elements. A Steering Committee was formed and first met during December 1999 to discuss the role of the committee and further development. A second NEMA Accreditation Workshop was hosted by the Florida Division of Emergency Management during January 2000, and additional Steering Committee meetings held during February and May. During August 2000, a Working Group completed drafting of the EMAP standard and a NEMA Accreditation Program Manager, Emily DeMers, was hired. A status report was presented at NEMA's Annual Conference and a resolution adopted by the membership to continue with the implementation. The Steering Committee will meet again during October this year to review the draft EMAP standard and other activities to support the future implementation. The schedule as presently envisioned continues with a phased approach. Phase I development is nearing completion and future phases are planned as follows: Phase II (2001): Complete implementation of organizational structure including establishing a non-profit, tax free corporation consisting of an accreditation Commission, Governing Board, and working committees as needed; complete supporting documentation including an Accreditation Process Guide, Assessor Manual and Self-assessment Guide; alpha test with three state emergency management programs. Phase III (2002): Voluntary state level beta tests; local level alpha tests. Phase IV (2003): State level accreditation; local level beta tests. Phase V (2004): Begin integrated state and local accreditation pilot initiatives. Phase VI (2005): Continue accreditation with a self-sustaining EMAP. Phase VII (2006): Begin re-accreditation cycle.
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EMAP Concept and Process - The concept of an accreditation program has been established and accepted by NEMA membership and other emergency management stakeholders. The concept embraces the belief that state and/or local government emergency management programs can be accredited based upon the standard developed by the National Fire Protection Agency, endorsed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The accreditation will be voluntary and sought after by state and local emergency management organizations. The vision is that accreditation will promote continuous program improvement which will ultimately benefit the public. The accreditation process has been defined and includes distinct steps: The Application Phase , Self Assessment Phase, On-site Assessment Phase, Commission Review Phase, Maintenance/Re-accreditation Phase. Initially, for the pilot assessments, the existing CAR instrument will be used as an interim tool for the self-assessment. Degrees of accreditation (vs. a pass/fail system) are under consideration, but have not been finalized. |
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EMAP Standard - The EMAP Working Group adopted NFPA 1600 as the foundation for the EMAP standard. Following each NFPA 1600 cite, there is an "EMAP Standard" that expresses the intent of the EMAP drafters, and eventually the Commission, concerning how the standard should be interpreted for the entity seeking accreditation. Thus, the NFPA 1600 Standard has been expanded to suit the unique requirements of government emergency management programs by adding clarifying statements of intent. For example, section 3.7.5 of NFPA 1600 briefly states a requirement to communicate and coordinate the entity's incident management system. The draft EMAP standard language reads: The emergency management program develops, publishes and distributes information about its incident management system to all who have a potential involvement in an emergency operation. This coordination includes superior, subordinate and lateral elements of the organization as well as neighboring jurisdictions. This information specifically addresses the resource management function and its relationship to incident management.
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The Role of IAEM - The International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) is committed to the initiatives and
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