Communications: The Key to Crisis Response
When disaster strikes the nation’s colleges, universities, schools and hospitals –these institutions not only need to ensure people’s safety, they must also deal with public communications. Can they do it effectively?

In an article on the Campus Safety magazine website, Barbara F. Nash says in addition to dealing with the disaster itself, “a campus must also safeguard against further damage caused by negative perceptions of the organization’s capabilities or response.”

Nash recommends that these institutions take time now to revisit their crisis management plans to make sure everyone understands the policies and procedures. How does a campus make communications work for it instead of against it? Nash says the answer involves focus and discipline in three areas: Planning, practice and performance.

• Planning: This is the most critical component, and Nash recommends doing it in advance with everything from formal policies to training.
• Practice: Nash recommends doing regular crisis communication drills ahead of time, including actual drills for releasing information to students or patients, employees, their families and the media.
• Performance: After practicing, the key to successful performance is having the discipline to stick to the policies and procedures, Nash says.

To read the full article, click here: http://www.campussafetymagazine.com/News/?newsID=2301