Application: Crisis Plan—Evaluation and Analysis

Strategies and elements of a crisis plan should be reviewed periodically to ensure they are up-to-date and to add possible solutions learned from recent crisis experiences. Evaluating a crisis plan typically involves examination of “what went right and what went wrong.” Changes that evolve from the evaluation process can include changes in leadership that result from failure to execute strategies and/or legal and ethical issues. Responding procedures may undergo changes because even “what went right” may be improved upon or expanded. Furthermore, resources may be updated because they are usually problematic for implementing any plan, particularly for a disaster of enormous scope. Financial considerations may be evaluated as well, and national, state, and local foundations and government agencies/departments may respond to revisions by providing resources in the form of grants to individuals or organizations. Plans and grants should continually be reviewed and renewed through this cycle of analysis.

To prepare for this assignment:

• Thinking about Hurricane Katrina, review pp. 164-175 of the article, “After Katrina: Building Back Better Than Ever,” and think about how the recommendations made might be applied to other natural disaster situations and/or locations.
• Review Chapters 3, 4, 5, and 17 in your course text, Crisis Intervention Strategies, paying particular attention to the information on response efforts to Hurricane Katrina.
• Review Chapters 9 and 12 in your course text, Crisis Management in the New Strategy Landscape, focusing on how organizational learning can be a useful part of crisis management evaluation and analysis.
• Review the article, “Project CREST: A New Model for Mental Health Intervention After a Community Disaster.” Consider how response analysis led to the development, in this example, of a useful new disaster intervention training.
• Review the article, “Styles of Suicide Intervention: Professionals’ Responses and Clients’ Preferences,” and reflect on how the authors investigated and analyzed professional responses to client suicide.
• Using Hurricane Katrina as your natural disaster case study, think about and evaluate the strategies used in the Mississippi crisis plan.
• Research the impact of Hurricane Katrina on either the Alabama or Louisiana coast line.
• Then consider which elements or strategies of the Mississippi crisis plan might be applicable and/or relevant to use in Alabama or Louisiana.
• Research the demographics for either the Alabama or Louisiana coast line and determine how the Mississippi crisis plan could be used in either of those states.
• Consider what you think might need to be added to the Mississippi crisis plan were it to be applied to recovery efforts in either Alabama or Louisiana.

The assignment: (4–6 pages)

• Based on your evaluation of strategies and the situation in the Hurricane Katrina natural disaster, explain which strategies you would use and why.
• Based on your analysis of the Mississippi crisis plan, explain which elements of the plan might be relevant/applicable to either Alabama or Louisiana.
• Identify any element of the plan that might be missing for either Alabama or Louisiana.