Disaster Response Engineer Curriculum
Introduction: Engineer roles in disaster response missions can be diverse. The disaster response engineer (DRE) training curriculum is intended to assist in gearing engineers for those diverse deployment scenarios. The curriculum developed totals 34 hours. Within the curriculum there are two focus areas that these courses are intended to address:
I) DRE focus for Healthcare Facility Response and Recovery Operations
II) DRE focus for Public Health Infrastructure Response and Recovery Operations
The intent of the curriculum is to deliver some basic understanding of the technical and administrative aspects of missions supported by a DRE. While this curriculum has many courses, it does not include everything. The trainings in the curriculum provided here focus more on engineering task specific and the subjects of responder safety, personal protective equipment (PPE), and hazardous waste are better covered in more general deployment trainings. You may also find that there is non-relevant subject materials in these courses, because these trainings were developed by others and are not designed specifically for USPHS engineering deployments. The purpose of the course list below is to describe what is most applicable to disaster response engineer deployments for USPHS engineers. The summaries below are intended to help the engineer focus on the most applicable and possible aspects of the courses for our USPHS deployment missions. The course curriculum descriptions below were consolidated due to the crossover of the subject materials. The course sources are provided as links in the below summaries. While the accompanying spreadsheet indicates a third potential deployment role DRE Basics for Engineers - Basic Facility Assessments, it is simply an introduction to assessments for those officers interested in potentially pursuing DRE roles. Engineers have been sought to conduct basic facility assessments (non-healthcare related) so the courses here are identified since the trainings overlap with a number of the DRE courses.
Post-disaster Assessments Course (7 hours) - This course type is available from multiple sources, but those listed here are based on the Applied Technology Council (ATC) ATC-20 and ATC-45 Standards/Field Guides. This training mostly focuses on basic damage assessment for safety. The course covers the continued use of a building after it has been damaged and also utility functionality like water and wastewater. These assessments are common and a central function for a disaster response engineer in post disaster scenarios. Sources: ATC, AIA (American Institute of Architects), SEA (Structural Engineering Association of America), (ICC) International Code Council, and California SAP (Safety Assessment Program. These courses may be expensive to take but directly applicable to the disaster response engineer roles. The links below are for general information on the courses.
Link: (https://atcouncil.org/products/training-info1/59-on-demand-training or https://www.aia.org/resources/9271-the-safety-assessment-program)
Environmental Health Training in Emergency Response (EHTER) Course (7 hours) - EHTER Awareness Level is 7 hours online through Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). This 7-hour EHTER Awareness Level course includes a variety of emergency response education like dealing with hazardous waste, as well as recovery for drinking water and wastewater systems. The course covers a number of relevant disaster response areas from an environmental health assessment perspective and provides great awareness of a number of inter-related components that impact public health and the use of healthcare facilities. There is also a higher-level EHTER Operations Level training that is an in-person 40-hour training, typically held in Anniston, Alabama. This 40-hour course is mentioned simply to allow another source of training if the officer is interested in a more in-depth training, but it is not required and has a significant tuition cost.
Link: (https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/ehs/elearn/ehter.htm - Then select the "EHTER Awareness Level")
CASPER (Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response) Course (1 hour) - A good resource to familiarize responders with CASPER assessments in a disaster response scenario. At one time, engineers did CASPER assessments fairly often on Applied Public Health Teams, for example completing drinking water well assessments. Generally, it is good to understand what a CASPER is and why they are done. Additionally, there are good tips on being sensitive to and relating to community members affected by disasters. Source: CDC
Link: (https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/hsb/disaster/eLearning-courses/Module%20III_CASPER/index.html)
Local Damage Assessments Course (2 hours) - Important for Disaster Response Engineers to understand scenarios when local officials need damage assessments. Disaster response engineers are frequently called on to complete damage assessments, but USPHS Engineers have typically not been called to do this. This is a central function for the disaster response engineering role, and local governments may need help with completing these assessments, and the basics should be understood. Source: FEMA
Link: (https://training.fema.gov/is/courseoverview.aspx?code=IS-559)
Damage Assessments for Public Works (3 hours) - Similar to the above course, but more focused on Public Works. Engineers may be called upon to complete Damage Assessments for Public Works infrastructure in a post-disaster scenario, which includes water and wastewater infrastructure. As a bonus to this course, there is also content on preparation. This training also touches on FEMA's IA (Individual Assistance) and PA (Public Assistance) funds which are the central funding mechanisms that FEMA uses to distribute Stafford Act Funds in the aftermath of a disaster. These are programs that fund recovery for individual homeowners (under IA) and communities (under PA). Source: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Link: (https://training.fema.gov/is/courseoverview.aspx?code=is-556)
ABCs of Temporary Power (2 hours) - Another central function for the disaster response engineer role. In the wake of many disaster scenarios, power is out. It is important to understand what is involved in emergency power supply. Typically, a response engineer is not installing generators, but it is important to understand the US Army Corps of Engineer (USACE) Emergency Support Function #3 (ESF3) role in emergency power supply. Under ESF3, USACE may handle emergency power for Healthcare Facilities and Water/wastewater infrastructure. A good understanding in this area may be in high demand and sometimes, a USPHS Engineer may accompany USACE on their emergency power missions which are instrumental in ESF8 functionality. Source: FEMA
Link: (https://training.fema.gov/is/courseoverview.aspx?code=IS-815)
Wastewater and Water Systems Course (<1 hour) - This course is not targeted to USPHS disaster response engineers, and a course to complete water and wastewater competency was difficult to identify. Fortunately, many USPHS engineers already have water and wastewater experience. Overall, it is important to understand that Water and Wastewater systems can be severely affected by disasters. This course provides some scenarios for consideration and covers some recommendations that can be made to the local public works and utility departments to compensate and prepare for a post-disaster scenario. Source: EPA
Link: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPK9j2S5TwE)
Healthcare Facilities Codes Course (4 hours) - National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Course 99 (NFPA 99). While this training is not specific for disaster response engineers, a general understanding of this knowledge is increasingly needed to complete facility assessments. This training is intended to familiarize engineers with the general codes required to be met to get a hospital operational, and in our case after a disaster. Just because the structure is sound and the power is back online, it is possible that the hospital may not be considered fully operational. Getting Healthcare Facilities operational after a disaster is thought to be a central role for USPHS disaster response engineers in ESF8. Source: NFPA for $212.95
Link: (https://catalog.nfpa.org/NFPA-99-Health-Care-Facilities-Code-2018-Online-Training-Series-P17870.aspx)
Life Safety Code for Health Care Facilities Course (6 hours) - NFPA 101. In addition to NFPA 99 listed above, NFPA 101 aids the understanding of life safety code requirements for the occupancy of a structure. While not directly applicable to the disaster response engineer, it is important to understand these requirements and keep them in mind when completing healthcare facility assessments. Again, getting Healthcare Facilities operational after a disaster is thought to be a central role for USPHS disaster response engineers. Source: NFPA for $244.95
Link: (https://catalog.nfpa.org/NFPA-101-Life-Safety-Code-for-Health-Care-Series-Online-Training-Series-2012-P16866.aspx?icid=D533)
Disaster Debris Overview (<1 hour) - This training is focused on post-disaster debris. Disaster debris is a major issue in post-disaster response and recovery. If called on to assess or evaluate debris it is good to understand the fundamentals about how disaster debris is typically managed. USPHS engineers have been called on to evaluate debris after a disaster, especially hazardous and/or biomedical waste, of which the basics are covered in the EHTER Awareness course listed above. The Debris Management Manual is available for reference. Source: USACE
Link: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNuJg2t6dYU)
