The Aftermath (e.g. Hurricane, Riots, Gun Violence)
Sharing Session - 30 Minutes
Alison Hare, MIA
Community Resilience Officer
Harris County Public Health
Jennifer Kiger, MPH
Chief of the Office of Public Health Preparedness & Response
Harris County Public Health
After Hurricane Harvey dropped one trillion gallons of water on Harris County causing wide-spread flooding, Harris County Public Health (HCPH) initiated recovery efforts and health resource support to its large, diverse community. As response activities from Hurricane Harvey began demobilizing, HCPH performed an agency-wide After Action Review (AAR) to look at the agency response, as well as recovery activities. One important lesson learned from this process was the need for a recovery plan to guide recovery goals and activities. Unprecedented storms like Harvey highlight the need for guidance in the recovery process; specifically, recovery efforts need direction and oversight as time progresses and regular public health agency activities are restored.
In collaboration with various partners, HCPH has developed a recovery plan to help guide public health work during recovery. The Recovery Plan was built on three initial steps: research, defining the purpose and scope of the plan, and leveraging partnerships. In addition, this plan views building resilience as a cornerstone of recovery, thereby ensuring that all recovery activities also contribute to strengthening community resilience where possible. Recovery plans are an important element for all disaster responses, but for disasters of Hurricane Harvey magnitude, it is likely that the recovery process can last for months/years and the direction and foundation for these activities need to be established early. The HCPH Recovery Plan aims to provide that direction and coordination.