A Critique of the United States National Incidenct Management System - Essay Example

The United s National Incident Management System (NIMS A Critique Overview The United s National Incident Management System (NIMS) is afederally standardized approach to the creation of a management structure to respond to emergency incidents. It has been developed by the Homeland Security Department in 2004 and is an evolving and growing process. It is designed to establish guidelines for emergency responders as well as the delegation of responsibility for processes and procedures. NIMS is intended to be implemented at all government levels; federal, state, and local. It is the purpose of NIMS to coordinate all emergency functions under a central command and control. It consolidates communications, logistics, and planning under a central command center. NIMS is designed to operate at the local incident level as well as handle large-scale emergency situations such as natural disasters and acts of terrorism. The NIMS is broad and sweeping in its definitions and goals that encompass training, certification, public information systems, and funding. This paper will discuss the benefits of the current NIMS document as presented and outline the underlying weaknesses of the overall management approach. Strengths An overriding benefit of NIMS is that it spells out a chain of command for an emergency incident response. It sets standardization for the chain of command and the management structure. This can help reduce the uncertainty that exists in an emergency situation as well as minimize the competing interests that agencies may have and eliminate the conflict for control of resources. A lesson learned from hurricane Katrina was the necessity, as well as the vulnerability, of the public communications network. During a large-scale disaster, many networks will be inoperable resulting in working systems becoming overloaded. In the case of a multiple agency response, there will be problems of network frequency and format compatibility. The NIMS has attempted to address this critical issue. The NIMS provides for a Communications Unit whose responsibility includes planning radio networks and frequency assignments to insure inter-operability of the communications system. Network management can insure compatibility without producing overlap interference between agencies and networks. The centralized logistics and supply component of NIMS provides for a unified management of all the necessary logistics that are involved in the emergency response. A single source for all supplies will make the supply channels more clear and that should result in reducing response times. They can also establish staging areas and satellite locations as needed to supply outlying victims and response personnel. This approach to material supply has an advantage over the random distribution of food, fuel, and supplies that would exist on a local or regional level. The establishment of a Joint Information Center (JIC) will aid in creating a central information repository. As the information is routed through a central location, it can be assimilated and can help get a better picture and evaluation of a large-scale disaster. Information can be rapidly checked for credibility and disseminated to the interested parties. The JIC can eliminate the breakdown in the public warning system and aid in the assessment of ongoing threats. Weaknesses One of the vulnerabilities of the NIMS structure is its reliance on bureaucratic systems to operate in an ever-changing environment. This organizational model has several drawbacks in its present form. The need to follow rigid guidelines and chain of command does not lend itself to the efficient management of an unfolding event such as a natural disaster. Smaller teams and control units may be able to react quicker to the evolving events during a hurricane than the highly defined structure of the NIMS. There may also be local resistance to the NIMS from self-interested agencies, volunteers, and community groups. While these groups may be able to serve as an adjunct to the NIMS, there is the threat that they will be excluded from the system due to lack of training and expertise with the NIMS. They may be disqualified from participation on several levels due to lack of prior certification. NIMS also faces the dilemma of linking preparedness funding to training and certification. This can especially impact the goal of facilitating communications. While a local incident may involve only local agencies that are currently networked through a common communications system, a large-scale emergency response will involve numerous agencies. Local fire, police, and medical units may not have the resources to standardize their communications equipment before the certification process is complete. This can leave many organizations without adequate equipment to respond rapidly and appropriately. NIMS may also face obstacles when presented with disasters that cross cultural and international borders. Lack of skills in cross-cultural coordination could severely hamper efforts when another country may be involved. Intercontinental power interruptions, bio-medical epidemics, or the transfer of nuclear contamination may be beyond the scope of the NIMS. There may be different value systems at work as well as the social factors that need to be considered to provide an adequate response. The inability to communicate with agencies outside our borders could be a limiting factor in the effectiveness of NIMS. There is also the danger of the Office of Public Information gaining too much control of the information that the public receives. It leaves itself open to being politicized and skewed for political purposes. As much as everyone would like to believe that in an emergency response these activities would be set aside, past experience has shown otherwise. The single source for information, while it may be helpful, can be vulnerable to being exploited. Conclusion The necessity of disaster preparedness and response can not be minimized or postponed until after a disaster strikes. The NIMS is a critical step in that direction. It provides a clear set of guidelines and coordinates the agencies that will respond in the case of a disaster. The standardization of supply routes and communications will be vital. However, there are realities with the implementation that may prevent other, and more useful methods, of response from occurring. Local agencies on every level need to be involved from the beginning to create a workable program. These local agencies need to involve community non-governmental organizations to be able to adequately make use of the resources they can provide. References Office of Homeland Security. National Incident Management System. Washington, DC: US Department of Homeland Security, 2004. 1-130. Read More