When it comes to emergency response coordination in Louisiana, the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP) is the go-to agency. All public elementary and secondary schools in the state are required to have a crisis management and response plan in place to ensure the safety of students, teachers, and school employees. The Louisiana State Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) outlines the key response principles, functions, and structures that organize the national response. The REMS Technical Assistance Center website provides free resources, training, and technical assistance (TA) for schools and their community partners. It also contains many tools and resources on emergency planning and responding to infectious disease outbreaks.
In the event of an impending emergency, the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) will contact the designated emergency preparedness and recovery representative to remind them to complete and maintain the emergency preparedness and recovery panel. The Emergency Management Institute offers self-paced courses designed for people who have emergency management responsibilities and for the general public. The Louisiana Primary Care Association (LPCA) has an emergency preparedness initiative that acts as a resource for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) when seeking emergency management guidance, training information, literature, and resources. Emergency preparedness (EP) is a continuous cycle of planning, organizing, training, equipping, exercising, evaluating, and taking corrective action in order to ensure effective coordination during incident response. Schools can access the six-step school emergency preparedness and management (REMS) process to create plans that promote safe and healthy school communities before, during, and after potential emergencies. Identifying the appropriate functions of health centers in the event of an emergency can be a challenge due to variations in their size and reach. A state plan is also in place to respond at the state level to major emergencies or disasters.
This plan establishes the measures that state and local governments must take, including those aimed at implementing federal disaster assistance. In addition to other potential hazards, Louisiana must remain vigilant and prepare for disease outbreaks, biological hazards, terrorism, technological failures, and other emergencies.
