Responding to Disasters and Threats to Service Continuity

During a disaster the important tasks are managing the workload; assessing and responding to client needs; supporting staff; managing volunteers; and coordinating, communicating, and assessing information systems. In this section find resources on responding to the immediate aftermath of disasters or major emergencies.

Building Capacity for Disaster Preparedness at a Child Welfare Agency
Capacity Building Center for States (2020)
Helps agencies build capacity by offering tools for developing policies and practices to be more flexible and effective in their response to disaster and disaster planning.

Community Emergency Response Team
Describes the Community Emergency Response Team program, which educates people about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills.

Coping With Disaster
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) (2017)
Offers age-specific information about the ways in which children may respond to disasters, including resources for helping children cope with sudden changes.

Disaster Preparedness & Recovery
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Provides a catalog of materials to help professionals and the general public prepare for disasters and recover in the aftermath.

Post-Disaster Reunification of Children: A Nationwide Approach (PDF - 1,100 KB)
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, American Red Cross, National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (2013)
Discusses the ways in which communities can be involved to promote the coordination of processes procedures to reunify children and their parents or legal guardians following large-scale natural disasters.

Promoting Adjustment and Helping Children Cope
American Academy of Pediatrics (2017)
Provides specific resources to enable pediatricians and other service providers to identify potential problems and promote coping strategies among children following a disaster.

The Role of First Responders in Child Maltreatment Cases: Disaster and Nondisaster Situations

Author(s)	Office on Child Abuse and Neglect, Children's Bureau Cage, Richard.;Salus, Marsha K.
Availability	View Download (PDF - 1,402KB)
Year Published	2010

This manual is for professionals, such as emergency medical technicians, child protective services caseworkers, and law enforcement officers, who have the primary responsibility for the initial on-scene response to situations in which child abuse or neglect may have occurred. The manual describes the various types of child maltreatment and the signs that may indicate that maltreatment has occurred, provides an overview of the initial response and investigation in cases of suspected maltreatment, explains how first responders should prepare for and provide testimony in court for maltreatment cases, and outlines how first responders and their agencies can respond to child maltreatment cases in emergencies and disasters, including how to prepare for such situations.

What Is Child Welfare? A Guide for Disaster Preparedness and Response Professionals

Series Title	Factsheets
Author(s)	Child Welfare Information Gateway
Availability	View Download (PDF - 300KB) Order (Free)
Year Published	2015

Provides an overview of child welfare, describes how disaster preparedness and response (DPR) and child welfare professionals can support one another’s efforts when responding to the safety and well-being of children and families during all phases of disaster.

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