Surge capacity networks

A nation prepared for disasters requires, in part, coordinated efforts between governmental emergency management agencies and nongovernmental service organizations (NSOs) active in disaster response. Although some NSOs are well integrated, many are not well understood and struggle to gain acceptance by formal emergency management systems. Thirty-three stakeholders from eighteen NSOs recently participated in focus groups to discuss: (1) NSO-mission or purpose; (2) NSO-capabilities and resources; (3) factors that facilitate or impede response effectiveness; and (4) recommendations for harnessing NSO-surge capacity. Results showed that: (1) most NSOs function independently or collaboratively to meet the basic and long-term recovery needs of all disaster survivors and damaged communities; (2) while NSOs maintain an array of unique and common capabilities and resources that span all four emergency response phases, these capabilities and resources are not integrated consistently throughout formal emergency management systems; (3) response effectiveness is facilitated by a spirit of cooperation, organizational flexibility, access to reliable communications and knowledgeable decision-makers capable of mobilizing needed resources; impediments to response effectiveness include lacking credentials for NSO-responders, limited governmental awareness of NSO-capabilities, and apprehensions towards partnering with formal emergency management systems; and (4) harnessing NSO-capabilities will require raising governmental awareness concerning the immense surge capacity represented by NSOs, and a commitment to establishing trusted and reciprocal partnerships between formal emergency management agencies and NSOs. Outcomes were translated into study metrics for upcoming survey research projects aiming to assess local and national NSO-surge capacity. Outcomes will help guide future initiatives to enhance and integrate that capacity nationwide.