For the early prevention, quick resolution, and effective recovery in the event of a public health emergency situation like the current H1N1 pandemic flu, the facility manager must rely on an emergency preparedness plan that has been previously established for the facility.
Having taken into consideration the needs of the various facility stakeholders such as the tenants, employees, and external providers, the facility manager should incorporate these requirements into the emergency preparedness plan to establish the critical responses and actions that must be executed before, during and after a pandemic flu or health crisis outbreak.
A well-crafted emergency preparedness plan ensures business continuity for the facility and is often one of the deciding factors for tenants to buy or lease within the facility. The emergency preparedness and response plan is a statement or declaration of assurance that the tenants’ personal safety is protected when they are in the facility premises.
Given the importance of the emergency preparedness plan, it must undergo a thorough review and regular testing to ensure that is it always effective when actual emergency situations arise. To do this, regular emergency drills and constant communication on safety issues between the facility manager and tenants must be conducted. These activities will help in the prevention of a possible outbreak, and when the worse does happen, the tenants are already informed of their roles in activating the emergency response plan, increasing the likelihood of controlling and resolving the crisis faster and more effectively.
