Abildsnes, E., Paulsen, S., & Gonzalez, J. J. (2023). Improving resilience against a pandemic: A novel technology for strategy development with practitioners and decision-makers. In Jaziar Radianti, Ioannis Dokas, Nicolas Lalone, & Deepak Khazanchi (Eds.), Proceedings of the 20th International ISCRAM Conference (pp. 964–974). Omaha, USA: University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Abstract: The project Systemic Pandemic Risk Management (SPRM), funded by the Research Council of Norway, has developed methods to assess and manage pandemic systemic risks. The project consortium includes an enterprise leading the project, public partners and research institutions in Norway, Sweden, and Italy. Kristiansand municipality, a partner in the SPRM project, adopted the project methods to assess and manage systemic risks. Based on a scenario about the potential spread patterns of the COVID-19 Omicron variant developed by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, staff from Kristiansand employed the SPRM project’s approach to facilitate systemic risk assessment and management workshops. Practitioners and decision-makers from the main hospital in the Agder county and several municipalities proposed risks, their causal consequences and identified practical and impactful mitigation strategies. The strategies were implemented at the county level. The approach can improve handling of systemic risk scenarios beyond pandemics.
|
Ronja Addams-Moring. (2007). Tsunami self-evacuation of a group of western travelers and resulting requirements for multi-hazard early warning. In K. Nieuwenhuis P. B. B. Van de Walle (Ed.), Intelligent Human Computer Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM 2007 Academic Proceedings Papers (pp. 83–92). Delft: Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM.
Abstract: This paper describes the experiences of a West-European project group in Sri Lanka in March 2005, during a tsunami threat. They had previous disaster related knowledge and used both local guidance, global media and contacts back home, but could not get adequate information about how much time they had, how likely a tsunami was, or which countries had ordered evacuations. Their decision to evacuate was based on their own reasoning and influenced most by one trusted local resident. Their mobile phone communication with their relations in Europe created a de facto ad hoc mobile emergency announcement (MEA) system. Their decision to return relied heavily on the ad hoc MEA text messages, as local authorities had not yet issued an all-clear. The findings underline the importance of multiple early warning languages and delivery channels and suggest that when relevant, 'event onset time' should be explicit in early warning.
|
Nuno Afonso, & M. Luísa Sousa. (2011). Seismic scenario simulations using a GIS Web Service. In E. Portela L. S. M.A. Santos (Ed.), 8th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management: From Early-Warning Systems to Preparedness and Training, ISCRAM 2011. Lisbon: Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM.
Abstract: Throughout its history, Portugal Mainland and Azores Archipelago have suffered the catastrophic effects of earthquakes originating significant damages in buildings and human losses. Being aware of Portuguese seismic risk, civil protection authorities promoted some studies leading to the development of a seismic scenario simulation tool, applicable to some Mainland Portuguese regions. This paper describes recent improvements in the seismic scenario simulation tool, named LNECloss, and illustrates its applications to the evaluation of building damages and social losses, due to plausible seismic scenarios affecting Portugal. Some development requirements were identified in LNECloss simulator, namely making it available as a service on the Web, providing a stand alone tool, with no need of a geographic information desktop environment, although with the GIS capabilities of mapping and synthesis of the seismic scenario effects. In conclusion, the developed GIS Web Service offers a useful tool for seismic risk assessment and emergency planning and management.
|
Syed Ahmed, Paul A. BiedrzyckiA., Shannon Opel, David A. Nelson, Marie G. Sandy, & Zeno Franco. (2012). Community engagement for translational disaster research: Fostering public, private & responder group partnerships. In Z.Franco J. R. L. Rothkrantz (Ed.), ISCRAM 2012 Conference Proceedings – 9th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Vancouver, BC: Simon Fraser University.
Abstract: Vulnerable communities are disproportionately impacted by major disasters. Information scientists working to improve disaster planning and mitigation efforts in these communities often involve first responder (practitioner) groups in collaborative design; however, less emphasis has been placed on developing long-term, sustainable crisis informatics partnerships at the population level. Community-based participatory research approaches are gaining attention in the US as an important element in translational science efforts designed to move innovations “from the bench to the curbside.” Community Engagement in Research (CEnR) is a community research approach adopted US National Institutes of Health (NIH) to improve public health intervention. CEnR has implications for improving the generalizability of ISCRAM research, may provide a roadmap for Public/Private/Community disaster research partnerships, and suggests modifications to training for information scientists working in this arena. The CEnR approach also recognizes conflicts that can occur in community/government partnerships, emphasizing the importance of predicting and preventing these situations. © 2012 ISCRAM.
|
Ajay Kumar, & Simeon Vidolov. (2016). Humanitarian Effectiveness: Reconsidering the Ethics of Community Engagement and the Role of Technology. In A. Tapia, P. Antunes, V.A. Bañuls, K. Moore, & J. Porto (Eds.), ISCRAM 2016 Conference Proceedings ? 13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Abstract: This position paper discusses the ongoing debate on the topic of humanitarian effectiveness and highlights the need to look at the structuring of the humanitarian system from an ethical point of view. The paper makes the argument that any community engagement with the affected population is a matter of ethics and dignity of those needs to be considered as a central focus to the discussion. The paper also discusses how the humanitarian system as a set of technology, tools & practises focusses on efficiency, and overshadows the issues of care by objectifying and turning the affected population into mere numbers. We discuss that technology and organisations are inter-twined and such a discussion of technology cannot be contemplated without considering the traditional institutional practises as a whole.
|
Amanda Jaber, Björn Johan Erik Johansson, Linnea Bergsten, Joeri Laere van, & Peter Berggren. (2019). Evaluating the observation protocol of the Team Resilience Assessment Method for Simulation (TRAMS). In Z. Franco, J. J. González, & J. H. Canós (Eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response And Management. Valencia, Spain: Iscram.
Abstract: This work in progress paper presents an initial evaluation of the observation protocol of the Team Resilience Assessment Method for Simulation (TRAMS) conducted in a crisis response simulation project. TRAMS is designed to assess the resilience of crisis response teams. The TRAMS observation protocol uses six core resilience functions from the Systemic Resilience Model as its theoretical foundation. Three independent observers used the protocol during a pilot study and six actual simulation games. Strategies relating to three out of six core resilience functions could be identified. The observations made were distributed similarly among the observers, indicating that the components of the TRAMS protocol are stable enough to continue developing the protocol. This study describes changes made to the protocol since the original design, and describes how the strategies relating to the six core resilience functions can be identified in the simulation games.
|
Amina Saoutal, Nada Matta, & Jean-Pierre Cahier. (2015). Approach to support Situational Awareness within Inter-Organizational Collaboration in Crisis Response. In L. Palen, M. Buscher, T. Comes, & A. Hughes (Eds.), ISCRAM 2015 Conference Proceedings ? 12th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Kristiansand, Norway: University of Agder (UiA).
Abstract: Regardless of the type of crisis and its complexity as well as the difference of culture, objectives and priorities of the multitude organizations involved, emergency response requires effective communication in order to achieve situational awareness within inter-organizational collaboration, make decision and achieve their own objectives. However, actors are challenged by several problems. Among them, weak interaction and information exchange, unavailability of information at the right time etc. Our contribution outlined in this paper is suggesting an approach based on an empirical study conducted in France. The objective of this approach is to mitigate inter-organizational communication problems and support situational awareness (SA) by distributing needed information at the right time.
|
Bo Andersson, & Jonas Hedman. (2006). Issues in the development of a mobile based communication platform for the swedish police force and appointed security guards. In M. T. B. Van de Walle (Ed.), Proceedings of ISCRAM 2006 – 3rd International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 181–187). Newark, NJ: Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium.
Abstract: This paper presents the learning experiences from the development of a mobile-based communication platform, called OrdningsVaktsCentralen (OVC). OVC can be translated to Security Guard Central. OVC is designed to enable the Swedish Police Force (SPF) to comply with new legal requirements and enhance their collaboration with Appointed Security Guards (ASG). The focus of this paper is on the early phases of development; in particular on the specific technical issues such as interoperability and standards used in the development of mobile based systems. The learning experiences are as follows: firstly, when developing mobile based systems we suggest and recommend that the analysis phase should be enhanced and it should address the interoperability between mobile phones on one hand and operators on the other hand. Secondly, global and national standards, such as the MMS7 for sending multi-media messages, are not always standardized. It seems that operators and mobile phone manufacturers make minor alterations and interpretations of the standard and thereby some of the benefits found in standards disappear. Thirdly, mobile based communication platforms have a large potential for contributing to the field of emergency management information systems since they can be based on open and nationally accepted standards.
|
Dennis Andersson, & Amy Rankin. (2012). Sharing mission experience in tactical organisations. In Z.Franco J. R. L. Rothkrantz (Ed.), ISCRAM 2012 Conference Proceedings – 9th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Vancouver, BC: Simon Fraser University.
Abstract: A tactical organisation can be seen as an adhocracy designed to perform missions in uncertain, ambiguous and complex environments. Flexibility, adaptability, resilience, innovation, creativity and improvisation have all been identified as key skills for successful outcome of these missions. To learn skills associated with such abilities previous research has shown that knowledge acquired through experience plays an important role. It is important that organisations share and learn from experiences to improve their ability to cope with novel situations. In literature there is a lack of consistency in how these abilities are discussed, we therefore propose the FAIRIC model. By unravelling some of the similarities and differences we create a common vocabulary to discuss knowledge gained from experience. This can help classify different experiences and provide a systematic way of gathering and modelling knowledge on situational factors to enable sharing of mission experience over boundaries of time and space. © 2012 ISCRAM.
|
Andreas Lotter, Florian Brauner, Alexander Gabriel, Frank Fiedrich, & Stefan Martini. (2017). New Decision-Support Framework for Strengthening Disaster Resilience in Cross-Border Areas. In eds Aurélie Montarnal Matthieu Lauras Chihab Hanachi F. B. Tina Comes (Ed.), Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response And Management (pp. 412–419). Albi, France: Iscram.
Abstract: The improvement of disaster resilience in cross-border areas causes special challenges. Involved countries use different structures in their civil protection systems and have to work together facing more difficult conditions than in local incidents. Furthermore, in the past involved countries mainly worked individually and focused on the concerned areas in their territories regardless transnational activities. The project INCA will develop a resilience framework to support decision-makers. The framework will focus on information management, the implementation of volunteers and the needs of citizens who are receiving medical care. Therefore, a case study region on the German-French border was defined and a scenario-based approach will be used to investigate resilience opportunities through disaster collaboration. The tested scenario is a transnational long-lasting power-outage in the German-French region.
|
Anjum, U., Zadorozhny, V., & Krishnamurthy, P. (2023). Localization of Events Using Neural Networks in Twitter Data. In Jaziar Radianti, Ioannis Dokas, Nicolas Lalone, & Deepak Khazanchi (Eds.), Proceedings of the 20th International ISCRAM Conference (pp. 909–919). Omaha, USA: University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Abstract: In this paper, we develop a model with neural networks to localize events using microblogging data. Localization is the task of finding the location of an event and can be done by discovering event signatures in microblogging data. We use the deep learning methodology of Bi-directional Long Short-Term Memory (Bi-LSTM) to learn event signatures. We propose a methodology for labeling the Twitter date for use in Bi-LSTM However, there might not be enough data available to train the Bi-LSTM and learn the event signatures. Hence, the data is augmented using generative adversarial networks (GAN). Finally, we combine event signatures at different temporal and spatial granularity to improve the accuracy of event localization. We use microblogging data collected from Twitter to evaluate our model and compare it with other baseline methods.
|
Anmol Haque, Duygu Pamukcu, Ruixiang Xie, Mohsen Zaker Esteghamati, Margaret Cowell, & Jennifer L. Irish. (2021). Cascading Effects of Mass Gatherings on COVID-19 Infections from a Multi-hazard Perspective: A Case Study of New York City. In Anouck Adrot, Rob Grace, Kathleen Moore, & Christopher W. Zobel (Eds.), ISCRAM 2021 Conference Proceedings – 18th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 218–227). Blacksburg, VA (USA): Virginia Tech.
Abstract: The devastating economic and societal impacts of COVID-19 can be substantially compounded by other secondary events that increase individuals' exposure through mass gatherings such as protests or sheltering due to a natural disaster. Based on the Crichton's Risk Triangle model, this paper proposes a Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation framework to estimate the impact of mass gatherings on COVID-19 infections by adjusting levels of exposure and vulnerability. To this end, a case study of New York City is considered, at which the impact of mass gathering at public shelters due to a hypothetical hurricane will be studied. The simulation results will be discussed in the context of determining effective policies for reducing the impact of multi-hazard generalizability of our approach to other secondary events that can cause mass gatherings during a pandemic will also be discussed.
|
Anouck Adrot, & Mercedes Aguerre. (2022). Data Ecosystems and Disaster Risk Reduction in Cross-border Regions: Visioning from 2020 Roya Valley Flood Disaster. In Rob Grace, & Hossein Baharmand (Eds.), ISCRAM 2022 Conference Proceedings – 19th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 878–886). Tarbes, France.
Abstract: Knowledge on the practical support from data ecosystems to disaster risk reduction remains partial. More specifically, we misunderstand the drivers and challenges inherent to emergency data ecosystems development in cross-border regions. We also miss cases of data ecosystem building in those regions. This research addresses these gaps by abiding by the principles and guidelines of visioning, a prospective and collaborative research design. Based on qualitative interviewing and archive analysis of the case 2020 Roya Valley floods, this work provides a prospect of a segment of data ecosystem that involves an organizational field aiming at Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) at the French-Italian border. Still in progress, this work provides a comprehensive narration of a fictious data ecosystem. The narration hints at the major benefits and challenges inherent to this potential data ecosystem. This work enriches our understanding of data ecosystems’ features and benefits to cooperation between organizations involved in emergencies at borders (such as governments, civil protection agencies, volunteer-based organizations). In future development it will propose an agenda to support practitioners in the development good practices related to data ecosystems.
|
Anouck Adrot, Samuel Auclair, Julien Coche, Audrey Fertier, Cécile Gracianne, & Aurélie Montarnal. (2022). Using Social Media Data in Emergency Management: A Proposal for a Socio-technical Framework and a Systematic Literature Review. In Rob Grace, & Hossein Baharmand (Eds.), ISCRAM 2022 Conference Proceedings – 19th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 470–479). Tarbes, France.
Abstract: Data represents an essential resource to the management of emergencies: organizations have been growingly investing in technologies and resources to lever data as an asset before, during, and after disasters and emergencies. However, research on data usage in emergency management remains fragmented, preventing practitioners and scholars from approaching data comprehensively. To address this gap, this research in progress consists of a systematic review of the literature in a two-steps approach: we first propose a socio-technical framework and use it in an exploratory mapping of the main topics covered by the literature. Our preliminary findings suggest that research on data usage primarily focuses on technological opportunities and affordances and, hence, lacks practical implementation aspects in organizations. The expected contribution is double. First, we contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of data usage in emergency management. Second, we propose future avenues for research on data and resilience.
|
Gaston C. Armour, & Hero Tameling. (2011). Collaborative relationships are key to community resilience and emergency preparedness. In E. Portela L. S. M.A. Santos (Ed.), 8th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management: From Early-Warning Systems to Preparedness and Training, ISCRAM 2011. Lisbon: Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM.
Abstract: The United States of America experienced two major incidents that changed the countrys perspective on emergency preparedness: September 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks, and Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Since that time the United States Department of Homeland Security established 10 separate Regional Catastrophic Planning Teams (RCPT) around the country. These RCPTs were set-up to inform, train and determine the effectiveness of mutual-aid coordination and prepare individuals, families and communities for an “all-hazard” environment. As RCPT members representing one state agency providing human services, the authors proposed an initiative, based on a working model they had already deployed in their own agency, to enhance emergency preparedness activities to include individual and community resiliency along with disaster and catastrophic planning. That request to expand the RCPT role, opened-up a dialogue to develop an innovative approach to collaborative partnerships. This shift afforded additional opportunities in times of a crisis, disaster or catastrophe.
|
Naveen Ashish, & Sharad Mehrotra. (2010). Community driven data integration for emergency response. In C. Zobel B. T. S. French (Ed.), ISCRAM 2010 – 7th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management: Defining Crisis Management 3.0, Proceedings. Seattle, WA: Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM.
Abstract: This paper describes our work in progress on an approach and technology for providing integrated data access in situational awareness applications – particularly for disaster and emergency response. The key new aspect of our work is an approach where information aggregation, processing, and integration capabilities are offered as a service to any new application builder. Further, we provide a framework for possibly reusing prior information integration knowledge, the development of which demands the major fraction of time and complexity in a new application, in a customized fashion for new application. Our overall goal is to provide a framework where integrated access to critical data in an emergency response situation can be enabled very rapidly and by personnel with basic IT and data handling expertise. Our approach, while general purpose, is currently motivated by and grounded in the context of situational awareness systems for incident commander decision support in the fire response domain.
|
Astrid Janssen, & Hanneke Vreugdenhil. (2015). Objective oriented exercise evaluation with TARCK-it. In L. Palen, M. Buscher, T. Comes, & A. Hughes (Eds.), ISCRAM 2015 Conference Proceedings ? 12th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Kristiansand, Norway: University of Agder (UiA).
Abstract: Do we fully utilize the results of disaster management exercises? Do we miss valuable feedback? Many different types of disaster management exercises, command post exercises, tabletop exercises, or serious games have a specific purpose. Generally each exercise is designed to meet its own particular exercise goals. Evaluation of the exercises is achieved in many different ways. Not always guidelines for exercise evaluation are present. Generally the exercise participants? performance is assessed by experienced staff members. The main purpose of the evaluation is to see whether the exercise goals are met. In this publication the authors suggest that a valuable source of information about the participants? performance in exercises remains often undiscovered. A new level of information can be unlocked by evaluating the exercise using a structured, analytical method. The method TARCK-it directly compares measured participant or team performance with the exercise goals.
|
Christoph Aubrecht, Klaus Steinnocher, & Hermann Huber. (2014). DynaPop – Population distribution dynamics as basis for social impact evaluation in crisis management. In and P.C. Shih. L. Plotnick M. S. P. S.R. Hiltz (Ed.), ISCRAM 2014 Conference Proceedings – 11th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 314–318). University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University.
Abstract: In this paper ongoing developments regarding the conceptual setup and subsequent implementation logic of a seamless spatio-temporal population dynamics model are presented. The DynaPop model aims at serving as basic input for social impact evaluation in crisis management. In addition to providing the starting point for assessing population exposure dynamics, i.e. the location and number of affected people at different stages during an event, knowledge of spatio-temporal population distribution patterns is also considered crucial for a set of other related aspects in disaster risk and crisis management including evacuation planning and casualty assessment. DynaPop is implemented via a gridded spatial disaggregation approach and integrates previous efforts on spatio-temporal modeling that account for various aspects of population dynamics such as human mobility and activity patterns that are particularly relevant in picturing the highly dynamic daytime situation.
|
Audun Stolpe, & Jo Hannay. (2021). On the Adaptive Delegation and Sequencing of Actions. In Anouck Adrot, Rob Grace, Kathleen Moore, & Christopher W. Zobel (Eds.), ISCRAM 2021 Conference Proceedings – 18th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 28–39). Blacksburg, VA (USA): Virginia Tech.
Abstract: Information systems support to crisis response and management relies crucially on presenting actionable information in a manner that supports cognitive processes, and does not overwhelm them. We outline how AI Planning can be used viably to support the \emph{delegation and sequencing} of tasks. The idea is to use standard operating procedures as initial specifications of plans in terms of actors, actions and delegation rules. When expressed in the AI planning language \textit{Answer set Programming} (ASP), machine reasoning can be used in a \textit{pre-incident review} to display relevant delegation and sequencing inherent in a plan. % together with measures of goal achievement. The purpose of this is to uncover weaknesses in the initial plan and to optimize sequencing and delegation to increase the likelihood of achieving goals. Further, adaptive planning can be supported in \textit{during-incident reviews} by updating the current status, upon which ASP will then compute new alternatives. % and corresponding goal achievement measures. At this point, initial goals may no longer be viable and the explicit suggestion of prior sub-optimal goals now worth pursuing can be a game-changer under stress. The conceptual basis we lay out in terms of delegation and sequencing can be readily extended with further planning factors, such as resource requirements, role transfer and goal achievement.
|
Jonathan L. Barr, Annie M. Boek Peddicord, Russ Burtner, & Heidi A. Mahy. (2011). Current domain challenges in the emergency response community. In E. Portela L. S. M.A. Santos (Ed.), 8th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management: From Early-Warning Systems to Preparedness and Training, ISCRAM 2011. Lisbon: Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM.
Abstract: This paper describes the development of a framework targeted to technology providers to better understand the grand domain challenges of the emergency response and management community (EM). In developing this framework, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) researchers interviewed subject matter experts (SMEs) across the EM domain and corroborated these findings with current literature. We are presently examining relationships and dependencies within the framework. We anticipate that a thorough understanding of these gaps and dependencies will allow for a more informed approach to prioritizing research, developing tools, and applying technology to enhance performance in the EM community.
|
Marie Bartels. (2014). Communicating probability: A challenge for decision support systems. In and P.C. Shih. L. Plotnick M. S. P. S.R. Hiltz (Ed.), ISCRAM 2014 Conference Proceedings – 11th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 260–264). University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University.
Abstract: This paper presents observations made in the course of two interorganizational crisis management exercises that were conducted in order to identify requirements for a decision support system for critical infrastructure operators. It brings into focus how different actors deal with the uncertainty of information that is relevant for other stakeholders and therefore is to be shared with them. It was analyzed how the participants articulated und comprehended assessments on how probable the reliability of a given data or prognosis was. The recipients of the information had to consider it when making decisions concerning their own network. Therefore they had to evaluate its reliability. Different strategies emerged.
|
Tuncay Bayrak. (2007). Performance metrics for disaster monitoring systems. In K. Nieuwenhuis P. B. B. Van de Walle (Ed.), Intelligent Human Computer Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM 2007 Academic Proceedings Papers (pp. 125–132). Delft: Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM.
Abstract: Understanding the performance of disaster monitoring systems is a key to understanding their success, therefore; various qualitative and quantitative measures and metrics can be applied in the characterization and analysis of such systems. Through evaluation studies, problems that impede a disaster monitoring system performance can be identified. The results can be used for system control, design, and capacity planning. Previous studies address technical performance analysis metrics for analyzing monitoring systems leaving out human and organizational dimensions of such systems. Thus, the primary objective of this study is to identify and describe a set of disaster monitoring systems performance analysis metrics that may be employed to evaluate such systems. This study may be valuable to researchers and practitioners involved in disaster and emergency response studies in planning the transportation of vital first-aid supplies and emergency personnel to disaster-affected areas, and in improving chances of survival after a natural disaster.
|
Irma Becerra-Fernandez, Weidong Xia, Arvind Gudi, & Jose Rocha. (2008). Task characteristics, knowledge sharing and integration, and emergency management performance: Research agenda and challenges. In B. V. de W. F. Fiedrich (Ed.), Proceedings of ISCRAM 2008 – 5th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 88–92). Washington, DC: Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management, ISCRAM.
Abstract: Emergency management tasks are inherently complex and dynamic, requiring quick knowledge sharing and decision coordination among multiple organizations across different levels and locations. However, there is a general lack of understanding about how to describe and assess the complex and dynamic nature of emergency management tasks and how knowledge integration help managers improve emergency management task performance. This paper describes a research project that aims at (1) developing the concepts of task complexity and uncertainty of emergency management tasks and (2) testing the mediating role of knowledge sharing and knowledge integration between emergency management task characteristics and performance. The overall research agenda, approaches, challenges and the advantages of utilizing a virtual Emergency Operations Center (vEOC) for this line of research are discussed.
|
Narjès Bellamine-Ben Saoud, Julie Dugdale, Bernard Pavard, Mohamed Ben Ahmed, Tarek Ben Mna, & Néjia Ben Touati. (2004). Towards planning for emergency activities in large-scale accidents: An interactive and generic agent-based simulator. In B. C. B. Van de Walle (Ed.), Proceedings of ISCRAM 2004 – 1st International Workshop on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 173–177). Brussels: Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium.
Abstract: In this paper we describe the design and development of an interactive and generic agent based simulator, providing valuable support for organizing the emergency rescue plans of a large-scale accident. Analysis of real rescue activities has been conducted in collaboration with medical experts in order to understand the collaborative process and the involved actors and features. Based on the emergency analysis, an agent-based model and simulator was constructed including (1) the autonomous Agents – representing victims with evolving illness and rescuers (doctors, nurses, fireman) collaborating to rescue the first ones; (2) the Environment -representing the accident site having obstacles and dangerous areas and where the victims are initially spread and the doctors move to explore -perceive – treat and helpers evacuate; (3) the Interactions between rescuers – exploring collectively, evacuating by pairs, communicating directly or via artefacts- (4) the Organization of actors as distributed “independent” sub-teams in various site sub-zones or as a centralized whole team conducted by the rescue chief; and (5) the User interfaces allowing mainly initial configuration of the simulations (e.g. number of victims and states, followed strategies, rescuers behaviours), continuous visual control of the process of rescuing (e.g. site overview with acting-interacting agents, graphics, text descriptions), dynamic changes of parameters of an on-going simulation (e.g. adding new victims, adding new rescuers, or adding dangerous zones or new obstacles on sites) as well as step-by-step simulation. This simulation shows that it is possible to create a virtual environment with cooperating agents interacting in a dynamic environment. On-line and off-line analysis of simulation traces and results enable us first understanding complex situations in rescuing activities in large-scale accidents, and than planning for responding to crisis situation. This simulation approach is useful for identifying the best scenarios and eliminating potential catastrophic combinations of parameters and values, where rescue performance could be significantly impacted. © Proceedings ISCRAM 2004.
|
Patricia Gómez Bello, Ignacio Aedo, Fausto Sainz, Paloma Díaz, & Jorge De Castro. (2006). M-ARCE: Designing an ubiquitous mobile office for disaster mitigation, services and configuration. In M. T. B. Van de Walle (Ed.), Proceedings of ISCRAM 2006 – 3rd International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 121–126). Newark, NJ: Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium.
Abstract: Cooperation and mutual assistance in emergency situations is one of the main objectives of the Latin-American Association of Governmental Organisms of Civil Defense and Protection. To promote such collaboration m-ARCE has been developed; an ubiquitous mobile office for disaster mitigation where users can send and receive information anywhere and anytime. When a catastrophe happens in a country, and almost all infrastructure is destroyed, mobile technology, such as mobile devices and wireless networks, offers the user resources to ask for help and to manage it. Latin-American Countries often suffer catastrophes that provoke numerous human losses and major economic and social problems. International assistance and collaboration with the affected country is necessary to help in its recovery. The Web, like Internet, offers static office services to users who can access information using an infrastructure in indoor environments. On the other hand, mobile computing and networking use the Internet, together with mobile physical devices linked to it, and software platforms built upon it, to design and coordinate systems across countries. In the ubiquitous mobile office design, we describe how services, such as chat, email and wireless communication, should be configured for emergency situation. We make use of ubiquitous hypermedia -linked nodes in ubiquitous spaces- to ensure mobility and accessibility to the mobile device interface, such as PDAs and smartphones.
|
