The DHS-funded Stakeholder Engagement Initiative launched by the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency (RIEMA) and Powered for Patients in October 2015 is nearing its conclusion and will help set the stage for similar initiatives in other states. Key state stakeholders involved in the project have included the Rhode Island Department of Health; the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources; National Grid, the state’s primary electric utility; and the Hospital Association of Rhode Island. Several federal agencies have been active participants including FEMA, DHS, and HHS.
After more than a year of stakeholder meetings, emergency power system vulnerability assessments and strategic planning, a key outcome of the initiative will be a comprehensive Playbook, entitled Protecting Patients When Disaster Strikes. The Playbook details the key responsibilities of stakeholders across a four-phase planning and operational continuum to safeguard emergency power systems and expedite power restoration.
The Playbook will also introduce new consensus protocols that can become a national model for enhancing situational awareness of emergency power system status during disasters. (More to come on this once the Playbook is officially published in the coming weeks.)