Essentials in Emergency Management - Assignment Example

The for-profit sector includes businesses and institutions that offer goods and services for sale. Their main aim is to achieve profits in the sale of these products and services. This is quite different from the public sector majors on service delivery not on a profit. It is through the revenue and taxes that the employees in the private sector fund the public sector. The private sector also through their corporate social responsibility programs helps the community to develop. Non-for-profit organizations are institutions that are not categorized in the public or private sectors and offer goods and services for free.  In some situations, good corporate citizens donate to the public sector in an effort to give back to the community.

In disaster situations, these groups are affected interdependently. In a case of a mudslide, the demand for public services is increased. Due to the increase in the demand for these services, the budget of the public sector is strained. Companies and businesses in the private sector are also interfered with due to the damage of the disaster. This results in less tax remittance since their services have been affected (Lyon & Hamlin, 2001). In worst cases scenarios, the staff at these businesses may lose their jobs on either a permanent or temporary basis. The tax remittances and contributions to non-profit organizations have to reduce since the businesses are not running as usual. In this type of scenario, the non-profit organization is faced with a decrease in contributions and sometimes an increase in the demand for their services. Depending on the cruelty of the disaster and the strains on the local system, funds from outside of the resident community may be required to support the public in its salvage and go back to its normality.

Question #2

Disaster and emergency management has had continual evolution through the years. There exists numerous career opportunities in this field since an individual can be employed in the private, public and non-profit sectors. It is a sophisticated field because disaster affects any part of the community. This interrelationship between the sectors has affected the skills set for disaster and emergency managers. The careers range from the project managers on the ground to policymakers and executives in the office. Employment, therefore, in this field can be permanent or temporary since disaster and emergency are not always happening (Haddow et al, 2011). An example of full-time employment is at FEMA. At FEMA, Permanent Full-Time (PFT) staff are employed through a modest procedure that comprises an interview and application. Recruited employees can gain competitive status after one year of continuous service.  Temporary employment at FEMA can be as a Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employees (CORE). These are employees hired to labor for a specific limited period. This is usually about two to four years. Employment is usually renewed if there is consistent disaster and funding for the program is available. These staff can be employed under a rationalized method instead of a modest process. They are normally qualified for similar remunerations as PFT personnel but do not get modest career or status tenure during their period of employment. Other employment avenues are in the disaster management facilities or offices. These range from administrative, accounts, management to support staff who guarantee the smooth running of the facilities.

Question #3

There exist four different broad categories of hazards. These are physical, biological, chemical, and radiological hazards. Chemical hazards relate to the accidental spillage of chemicals into the environment. These can be chemicals from a facility or a transport vehicle. Chemical hazards may also result from uncontrolled reactions. This can happen in a facility or because of a fire or other type of disaster. A physical hazard is one brought about by forces of energy. Concisely, this includes all-natural disaster that involves high energy. Electrical and fire disasters are considered physical hazards. Structural failures are also part of physical hazards. This relates to collapsed buildings, bridges, and dams. Biological hazards relate to biotic caused disasters. This can range from pandemics to disease outbreaks. When biological agents are released accidentally or intentionally to the public, it is considered a biological hazard. Radiological hazards result from the discharge of radioactive agents to the public. This is mostly through nuclear leaks in nuclear plants. The “All-Hazards Approach” to emergency management is a process consisting of four continuous improvement processes (Gallant, 2008). These are mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.  This is a systematic approach and can be applied to any type of disaster. Through its continuous nature, managing a disaster becomes easier.