California Critical Incident Management

California Critical Incident Management: Three Primary Issues

The objective of this work is to research California OES recommendations for emergency responses by local law enforcement and to follow links to the Federal Government level. This work will examine the three most important issues raised in the research. Toward this end the "California Critical Incident Management: OES Law Enforcement Guide to Emergency Operations -- Redbook" has been reviewed and critically examined.

An analyses of any type of procedural information relating to emergency response operations requires identification of the primary processes that have been integrated into the process to ensure effectiveness and efficiency in service response to an affected region. This too is the case for California Law Enforcement emergency response in the State of California.

Communication

Noted first in the review of the "California Critical Incident Management: OES Law Enforcement Guide to Emergency Operations -- Redbook" is the factor of 'communication' processes that are integrated into this operation manual for emergency response of law enforcement personnel in the case of some disaster or other emergency producing event. The word 'communication' is stated 120 times in the critical incident management guide and each time it is stated included are such concepts as communication that is:

(1) Systematized and coordinated (page 84, 87, );

(2) Related to factors of accessibility during emergency response (page 84, 86, );

(3) Relating to notification and proper information delivery or 'relay' of information between responders and other parties (page 84, 85, ); and (4) Is characterized by no technical failure. (California Critical Incident Management: OES Law Enforcement Guide to Emergency Operations -- Redbook, 2003)

II. Designated Hierarchy of Agency Roles and Responsibility

Clearly the designation of the hierarchy concerning the roles and responsibilities of the various levels that local, state and federal agencies represent is of primary importance as this theme is interwoven throughout the content of the critical incident 'Redbook' for the State of California law enforcement agencies. However the word 'role' is stated only seven times and there is good reason that this is the case. It is stated on page 27 that Unified Command is characterized by its high flexibility because "As the incident changes over time with different disciplines moving into primary roles; the Unified Command structure and personnel assignments change to meet the need." (California Critical Incident Management: OES Law Enforcement Guide to Emergency Operations -- Redbook, 2003) In addition it is stated on page 18 as follows:

Utilize the most competent people in key roles, regardless of rank, and let them do their job; and Know your role (California Critical Incident Management: OES Law Enforcement Guide to Emergency Operations -- Redbook, 2003)

These primary issues are intricately linked to the collaboration geared toward best use of resources and human capital for the sake of efficiency and effectiveness that has been carefully constructed into the operational procedures stated in the 'Redbook'. It is this collaborative effort that comprises the third and final issue examined in this study.

III. Collaboration for Best Use of Resources and Human Capital

Nowhere in this 'Redbook' is the necessity of collaborative effort for best use of resources and human capital noted as in the section entitled "Translational Requirements" in which it is stated that it is necessary to:

(1) Recognize and anticipate the requirement that organizational elements will be activated and take the necessary steps to delegate the authority to others;

(2) Establish incident facilities as needed, strategically located, to support operations;

(3) Establish the use of common terminology for organizational functional elements, position titles, facilities and resources;

(4) Rapidly evolve from providing oral orders and instructions to the development of a written Incident Action Plan. (California Critical Incident Management: OES Law Enforcement Guide to Emergency Operations -- Redbook, 2003)