Building skills for emergency management

In an increasingly interconnected world, the ability to effectively manage public health emergencies has never been more crucial. Recognizing this, the World Health Organization (WHO) developed and launched a new training programme to enhance the skills necessary for operating public health emergency operations centres (PHEOCs) in the Western Pacific Region and the Western Balkans. The training was developed as part of an effort by the Global Public Health Emergency Operations Centre Network (EOC-NET) to enhance national emergency workforce coordination capacities.

The EOC-NET training uses simulation exercises - involving a disaster followed by a communicable disease outbreak - to allow participants to work through phases of an emergency response. Through this experiential learning approach, emergency responders were given the opportunity to develop and practise their knowledge and skills in a simulated environment.

Leveraging immersive learning to upskill emergency workforce

The training comprised an informational component followed by a simulation exercise. First, participants attended a series of online webinars aimed at establishing a baseline understanding of the PHEOC concept, modes of operation, legal frameworks and standard operating procedures, as well as the Incident Management System (IMS). These online sessions were enriched with presentations from representatives of countries with established PHEOCs, providing real-world context and insights.

Following the webinars, participants took part in a simulation exercise to deepen their emergency management skills through practice. A total of 37 participants from 11 countries and areas across the Western Pacific and the Western Balkans attended the simulation exercise in Istanbul, Türkiye, from 1 to 3 July 2024. The exercise offered a realistic environment to hone skills in coordination, decision-making, communication, planning and information management in the context of an evolving public health emergency.

Participants during a public health emergency operations centre (PHEOC) training. (Photo credit: WHO)

Speaking to the value of the training, Dr Intan Azura from the Malaysian Ministry of Health shared: "As a result of the training, I have improved my ability to make decisions under pressure, analyse real-time data, develop flexible response plans, allocate resources during an emergency, and collaborate across agencies and borders. Extending this training to more health emergency professionals will enable us to bolster national and regional health security."

For the simulation exercise, participants were placed in a scenario that mirrored the complexities of responding to simultaneous emergency events- a disaster followed by a disease outbreak. They were tasked with forming a national health sector incident management team working in the national PHEOC and with coordinating an effective response. The immersive experience was designed to build their emergency workforce skills, confidence and knowledge in effective emergency management.

"Through the simulation exercise, we identified gaps for improvement, particularly in learning how to respond to external stressors," said Dr Martina Kifrawi from the Ministry of Health of Brunei Darussalam. "Our key insight from this experience is that members of PHEOC must not only understand their roles and responsibilities but also grasp other terms of reference for improved coordination, she added."

By upskilling national and regional emergency workforce in emergency management, the WHO EOC-NET training programme ensures that countries are better prepared to respond to public health emergencies, ultimately protecting population health and well-being. EOC-NET thus contributes to the vision of the Global Health Emergency Corps - a framework for enhancing health emergency workforce capacity within health emergency prevention, preparedness, response and resilience work. These efforts also align with priorities under the Asia Pacific Health Security Action Framework - a regional platform to drive and coordinate efforts to strengthen health security capacities and enable implementation of the International Health Regulations (2005). This training programme was funded by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the European Union.

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