Our society is at an inflection point with crisis management. Indeed, since 9/11, the crises we face have become more complex and intense over time, e.g., hurricane katrina, great financial crisis, deepwater horizon, Ebola outbreak, and of course COVID-19. Some experts argue we are in an era of "polycrisis" in which multiple crises are unfolding, and which are often overlapping and causally interlinked.
Accordingly, we continue to face perennial threats, however with the added complexity of cyber threats and climate change which deepen the challenges. With a major disaster hitting every 15 days in the United States, effects are no longer linear, or even geometric, but exponential. The systemic harm can be much greater than the sum of its parts. In this session, we'll discuss the evolution of crisis management since inception of ICS in the 1970s and how our doctrine and protocols can evolve to meet future threats. We'll also discuss the role of gov't in crisis management, federal-state-local coordination, and opportunities to modernize our structures and processes for the future in this era of polycrisis.
Jon Spaner – McKinsey & Co - Partner; CAPT, O-6, USCG, (Ret.)
Jon Spaner is a Partner in McKinsey & Co’s Washington, DC office. He advises clients on management issues involving leadership, crisis management, transportation, border security, innovation, strategy, and international development across US gov’t departments and agencies.
Previously, Jon served as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Coast Guard for 22 years holding the rank of Captain (O-6) and leading two Major Commands: Sector Commander and Captain of the Port of San Diego, California, as well as Commanding Officer of US Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City, Michigan. He has held senior pilot ratings in the C-130 aircraft and H-60/65 helicopters during earlier tours in California, Florida, and Oregon. Moreover, on behalf of the U.S. Department of State, Jon led the United States delegation to the Arctic Council task force responsible for establishing the Arctic Economic Council.
Jon also served as Strategic Policy Advisor to the Four-Star General responsible for military operations in the U.S. Central Command region during OperationsEnduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom which included the Middle East, Levant, Central Asian States, and Horn of Africa. Moreover, he was Director of Port/Cargo Security on the White House staff and Special Assistant to the Homeland Security Advisor as a White House Fellow.
Jon has extensive experience with crisis operations including flying relief missions during Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, advising the National Incident Command during the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, and surviving a piracy attack in South America while serving on a U.S. Flag Merchant Ship as a cadet.
He holds an M.B.A. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), M.S. in Management from Purdue University, and a B.S. from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy where he served as the Regimental Commander. Jon is a Distinguished Graduate from U.S. Naval Pilot Training in Pensacola, Florida, where he graduated first in his class among all armed services and international students, and a 2013 alumnus of Harvard University’s U.S.-Russia Security Program.
Jon is a former International Affairs Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, former Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, and a former White House Fellow. He resides in McLean, Virginia.
With mass shootings on the rise data is showing that nearly one third are exiting the scene and flooding the closest hospital system, essentially moving the scene from one area in the community to the hospital. Without combining plans with local Law Enforcement, Public Safety, and Fire/EMS we are breaking the link in the chain to survival and thus leading to deaths in the community that could
have been prevented.
Receiving Hospitals from small community hospitals to large trauma centers play an essential role in both the mitigation and response to high threat events in the community. However, most are overlooked when it comes to preplanning for mass response. Hospitals are a missing link to the chain of survival and without integrating plans with law enforcement, public safety, fire, EMS and the entirety of the community, there leaves room for break down thus leading to further preventable deaths. This session will lay out common misconceptions to disaster response and propose a new way to fully integrate with a team approach in order to better help the community.
Dr. Reed Smith – Virginia Hospital Center - EMS & Emergency Physician
Dr. Smith is currently the Operational Medical Director for the Arlington County (VA) Fire and Police Departments, an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine, and an attending physician at the Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, VA. Board Certified in both Emergency Medicine and Emergency Medical Services, he has spent the last 12 years developing training and programs to address regional emergency preparedness and medical and operational gaps in the National Capital Region and nationwide, including the development of unique custom educational programs and medical operations for civilian and military special operations teams, and has developed new programs for unique operational EMS subspecialty teams and response models. In 2008, he was one of the original architects of the Rescue Task Force concept, an innovative pre-hospital public safety response to active violence and explosive scenarios. Additionally, in 2010, along with Dr. David Callaway and Mr. Geoff Shapiro, Dr. Smith developed the concept of Tactical Emergency Casualty Care as the civilian translation of
tactical combat casualty care and co-founded the Committee for Tactical Emergency Casualty Care (C-TECC). Over the past 10 years, he has served as the co-Chair of C-TECC and currently remains on the Executive Committee. He has spent many hours writing, teaching, and speaking on TECC to change the medical response paradigm for all high threat events in the civilian community, including serving as a subject matter expert and presenter for the FEMA Joint Counter Terrorism Awareness Workshop Series (JCTAWS) and as a member of the Inter Agency Board.
Dr. Smith frequently presents at national and international medical conferences, consults, and delivers training to many groups ranging from military special operations to civilian tactical and operational EMS providers to hospital-based providers and planners. Reed is a former EMT-Basic provider and Navy Combat Corpsman (NEC8404) and maintains a strong focus on the development and application of medical principles in non-permissive and operational environments.
When disaster strikes, who are you going to call? The Ghostbusters isn’t the answer. When we look at failures in disaster over history, there are several commonalities that make a disaster go well, or go poorly, and leadership is one of those items. A good leader is prepared, a better leader has a network of folks that they can either help, or who can help them. Everyone has the ability to be a leader, and our goal is to make a great leader. Join us as we talk about some of our disasters, lessons learned, and how good leadership makes the difference.
It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when a disaster strikes. Like many things, it’s not just what you do but who you know when you’re in the midst of a disaster. As we talk about the leadership lessons learned from several disasters, we’ll add tools to your toolbox that will likely prove invaluable to and your people.
Terence Sheehy – Dare County EMS - Deputy Chief of Operations
Terence Sheehy has over 25 years in the fire service and EMS. Deputy Chief Sheehy currently serves as the Deputy Chief of Operations for Dare County EMS where he is responsible for the day-to-day activities of the Department. Additional responsibilities include developing and implementing plans for special and weather-related operations such as festivals, marathons, flooding, and Hurricanes. Dare County EMS provides all aspects of EMS delivery ranging from 911, aeromedical, inter-facility transports, and scheduled transports to the citizens and visitors of the barrier island commonly known as the Outer Banks.
Deputy Chief Sheehy began volunteering at his local fire department when he was just 17 years old and over the last 20+ years, he has held various roles working in technical rescue, fire, and EMS, including being an operations supervisor with Kitty Hawk Ocean Rescue for eight years. Deputy Chief Sheehy also is the Chairman of the Dare County/Currituck County Regional Local Emergency
Planning Committee (LEPC) and is an Ambulance Strike Team Leader. Deputy Chief Sheehy has spoken at regional, as well as state-wide events. He has worked in the development of and serves as a faculty member for the North Carolina EMS Officer program. Deputy Chief Sheehy has earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Emergency Medical Care from Western Carolina University and is currently working on his MPA from the University of Texas at Arlington.
Hospital and emergency services workers are at the front lines for detecting and recognizing a patient’s exposure to dangerous pathogens, toxins, chemicals, and radiological materials. The astute observations and quick response from a healthcare worker may not only mitigate the effects of a Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) incident, but also prevent an incident from occurring in the first
place. The FBI seeks to partner with health care workers when suspicious incidents arise for investigation. Through this outreach event we will discuss how one should incorporate specific caveats that deal with WMD bioterrorism incidents into their emergency response planning guides and training events.
Jessica Young - FBI Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate - Management & Program Analyst
Jessica Young is a Management and Program Analyst at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with over 15 years of service. Currently, Ms. Young works as a Management and Program Analyst with the FBI’s Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate (WMDD)’s Chemical Biological Countermeasures Unit (CBCU). Her work focuses on planning and promoting law enforcement response programs for biological incidents in coordination with subject matter experts. Additionally, she facilitates the FBI/CDC
Criminal-Epidemiologic Investigations Workshops, training public health and law enforcement individuals at the federal, state, and local level.
Before CBCU, she worked for the WMDD’s National Policy and Planning Office as a Policy Program Specialist from 2015-2017, editing Presidential Policy Directives and interagency agreements, and attending National Security Council policy coordination meetings. Before coming to the WMDD, Ms. Young worked for the FBI’s Laboratory Division. From 2010-2015, Ms. Young worked for the Scientific Response Unit as a Microbiologist, processing hazmat crime scenes. From 2006-2010, Ms. Young worked for the Mitochondrial DNA Unit as a Biologist for the Missing Persons sub-section extracting and sequencing mitochondrial DNA.
In 2003, Ms. Young obtained her Bachelor of Arts degrees from Miami University of Ohio in Microbiology and French. In 2005 she obtained her Master of Science in Forensic Science (with an emphasis in Biology and Chemistry) from Nebraska Wesleyan University. In 2020, Ms. Young completed a Certificate in Biosecurity and Disaster Preparedness through Saint Louis University.
Cybersecurity has evolved over the last decade into one of the leading areas of concern and vulnerability for healthcare organizations. The patient risk, as well as the financial and reputational risks, are incredibly high and most organizations can ill afford to fall prey to an event. However, due to the stigma surrounding an attack, information sharing is more limited than in other emergency mitigation situations. Preparing with neighboring agencies and partners as well as reviewing internal and external threats all become key when preparing for the future of cyber mitigation. This presentation is designed to help accomplish all of the above in an open and engaging manner.
Cyber threats represent one of our most vulnerable, yet crucial points in healthcare. Our networks. Over the last several years, there has been a drastic uptick in cyber-crimes that have targeted healthcare for ransom. In 2021, that number topped 640 known breaches. These events come at a high cost to each facility and risk patient care along with financial stability in vast ways. This
presentation is designed to shed light on what one of the events look like from the perspective of a facility who became one of the many providers attacked and the steps taken to identify, recover, and mitigate from further events. We will discuss our timeline and provide practical steps to help your own organization with mitigation strategies as well as tips to bring this to the attention of your C-Suite and other decision makers.
Corey Bishop – Newberry County Memorial Hospital - Director of Surgery & Emergency Mgmt
Corey serves as the Director of Surgery and Emergency Management for Newberry Hospital in Newberry, SC and has served in this capacity for the last three years. He has worked for the hospital for the last 12 years in various roles to include Surgery and also Director of EMS for 2 years. Additionally, for the last 18 years, Corey has worked for Newberry County Emergency Services.
Currently, he serves as the Chief of Station 19, Lake Murray, and as the Assistant Director of NCESA, the managing body for all EMS/Rescue services. Corey resides in Prosperity, SC with his wife of 11 years and their 2 beautiful daughters.
5G will transform wireless communications infrastructure over the next several years and enhance the communications experience and capabilities of consumers, businesses, government agencies, and other critical infrastructure sectors, but much of what the average person knows about 5G is superficial and comes from advertisements provided by various cellular carriers. It is easy to buy
into the misconception that 5G is one specific thing, that it is already here, and that everyone will have similar experiences using the technology. In reality, 5G will provide a spectrum of enhanced capabilities, then the rollout of these capabilities will occur over a period of several years, and the user experience will vary temporally and spatially.
Dan Dunn– Concise Networks - Managing Director
Dan Dunn is the Managing Director at Concise Networks, LLC. With over 25 years of experience in the technology sector, Dan assists companies with automating business processes through working jointly with both line of business and IT stakeholders. He has led architectural studies and managed complex 4G/5G IT projects from initial conception through completion with Municipalities, Healthcare, and Utility Organizations across the county.
In episodic MCIs or during protracted strains on healthcare systems, crisis standards of care may be adopted to allow “the most good possible for the largest number of people with limited resources". However, crisis standards of care vary throughout the U.S. Furthermore, the majority of states do not provide clear, actionable guidance on the triage of burn patients. Given that existing guidelines (e.g., START algorithm) may not account for the unique needs of burn patients, responders and clinicians may benefit from evidence-based tools to guide their initial response and ongoing care efforts.
Dr. King is a decorated Colonel with over 20 years of service in the Army and over 15 years specializing in burns and trauma care. His publications have focused on burn injuries and trauma, with particular emphasis on those received in combat. In this session, Dr. King will address the unique needs of burn patients, whose care is often resource intensive, within the context of existing MCI triage frameworks. By the end of this session, participants will refine their initial triage skills and understand how to access the appropriate resources to optimize outcomes for burn patients.
Booker King – NC Jaycee Burn Center, UNC – Medical Director
Dr. King completed medical school at New York University (NYU) School of Medicine in 1994, followed by a general surgery residency at SUNY Buffalo. During residency, he participated in the Army Medical Command Specialized Training Reserve Assistance Program (STRAP), and after completing residency in 1999, he transferred from the Reserves to the active duty ranks as a Captain with his first assignment as a general surgeon at the Moncrief Army Community Hospital at Fort Jackson, SC. From there he was reassigned to Heidelberg, Germany, where he deployed to support Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.
After returning to the United States, he pursued a trauma/critical care fellowship at the University of Miami from 2005 to 2007. After his fellowship, he transferred to the US Army Burn Center at the Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) in Texas. He was appointed as Associate Director of the Burn Center and also served as the Associate Program Director of the Trauma/Surgical Critical Care
Fellowship. Dr. King’s third deployment was to Afghanistan in 2010. In 2013, he assumed the position of Director of the US Army Burn Center at BAMC. He reassigned to Fort Bragg in 2018 as the Trauma Medical Director and Co-Director of Critical Care Services at the Womack Army Medical Center.
In March 2020, Dr. King joined the UNC School of Medicine’s Department of Surgery as Chief and Professor in the Division of Burn Surgery and as the Director of the NC Jaycee Burn Center.
Considering the increasing number of high-profile active shooter/active assailant incidents across the United States this training is being made available to all first responders. Provides public safety responders and healthcare planners an overview of what is required to successfully manage the first critical 30 minutes of a multi-agency response to a chaotic, fast-moving, and high-profile
incident. The rapid and successful implementation of a strong Incident Command System (ICS) and Unified Command (UC) are recognized as critical tools in helping responders manage this incident in your community.
August Vernon - Forsyth County Office of Emergency Management - Director
August Vernon is currently the Director of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Office of Emergency Management. He has over 30 years of public safety experience and over 22 years of direct Emergency Management experience. August is an experienced and well-known public safety instructor who has taught over 800 classes on such topics as crisis management, incident command, emergency management and active threats planning and response.
There are many naturally occurring and manmade sources of radiological material located in our communities. Many of these materials are located in our environment, and some are used for industrial and medical purposes. This presentation will explain common sources of radiological material, possible terrorists' employment of it, risk to responders, mitigating the risk, and real-world
responses to radiological material incidents. Emergency response workers, particularly law enforcement officers, firefighters, medical and rescue workers, and other first responders may be at particularly high risk for exposure to radiation and other hazards when in or around affected areas. In this presentation we will explore how dangerous radioactive material is to the responder and methods we can use to detect, quantify, and mitigate the threat to the responder.
Danny Mills - Technical Resources Group, Inc. - NCSHP & Retired US Army Colonel
Dan Mills has a varied background in both civilian and military response operations. He served over twenty-nine years as a State Trooper with the North Carolina Highway Patrol. In that capacity, he worked enforcing traffic laws, a Vehicular Homicide Investigator, and finished his career as a supervisor in the Highway Patrol’s HazMat Unit. Mills also served for over 31 years as a US Army
Officer with the North Carolina Army National Guard. He served at every level of command from detachment to brigade command and retired at the rank of Colonel. Five years of his military career he served as the Deputy Commander and later as Commander of the 42nd Civil Support Team (Weapons of Mass Destruction). Dan currently serves as the Contract Coordinator for the Department of Energy's Transportation Emergency Preparedness Program (TEPP) in DOE Regions 2 and 3. His responsibilities include daily management of transportation planning, training activities, coordination of assessments, and developing/coordinating emergency preparedness exercises. Colonel Mills received his Bachelor of Science from Appalachian State University in 1986 where he also earned his US Army commission through the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. In 2009, he received a Master Certificate in Security Studies from East Carolina University and was later selected to attend the US Army War College where he earned his Master of Strategic Studies in 2012.
Is your agency prepared to respond to a nerve agent attack? This session will provide an overview of current chemical threats, how the CHEMPACK program was designed to mitigate a nerve agent attack and the North Carolina Plan developed to help coordinate and implement the distribution of CHEMPACK assets at the time of need. Participants of this session will walk away with a better
understanding of the CHEMPACK program and steps they can take to ensure their agency is prepared to respond to a chemical incident.
Tim Davis – NC PHP&R– NC MCM Coordinator
Tim is a 2007 graduate of the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers University. He has worked for North Carolina Public Health Preparedness and Response (PHP&R) since 2014, first serving as the Eastern Region Preparedness Pharmacist for 7 years, before moving into his current position as Medical Countermeasures Coordinator. Prior to joining PHP&R, Tim worked for 7 years as a board certified nuclear pharmacist for Nuclear Diagnostic Products, a then independent nuclear pharmacy located in Rockaway, New Jersey.
Michael Beuhler, MD - Dr. Beuhler is an Adjunct Professor of Emergency Medicine at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and a Medical toxicologist at Atrium Health in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is the medical director of North Carolina Poison Control, one of the busier poison centers in the United States where he has been for 20 years. He has authored several textbook chapters on chemical exposures, envenomations, phosphorus, and drugs of abuse. Research publications include work on acetaminophen, bupropion, snakes, and poison centers.
The Highland Park, IL July 4th Parade mass shooting was, as one would imagine, a day of tragedy. It was, however, also a day of heroism. As a lone deranged gunmen created havoc in the streets of a normally pleasant and peaceful community, he simultaneously triggered a series of actions capturing an unbreakable altruism, actions that saved lives. From police officers to firefighters, EMTs,
and paramedics, from nurses to doctors, from husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, and brothers, from strangers... everyone reached beyond their imagined capacity and helped. Everyone helped. Hear some of their stories and lessons learned.
Ben Feinzimer - Illinois Region 10 EMS - Highland Park
Dr. Ben Feinzimer is a board certified ER physician working in the northern suburbs of Chicago. He is a former firefighter/EMT, recipient of a master's degree in organizational psychology, and graduate of Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine. His residency in emergency medicine from the University of Illinois - Chicago included a year spent as education chief when he was recognized as educator of the year. Dr. Feinzimer has been the EMS and SWAT team medical director in Kenosha Wisconsin and is now the EMS Medical Director in Highland Park Illinois at NorthShore University Health System. In his current post he has developed and supervises Illinois' third field physician program. He lives in Deerfield, IL with his wife, three kids, and two golden retrievers.
Sharing the lessons learned from the 96-hour power outage that affected Moore County, NC in December 2022. We will look at the challenges and successes regarding the Public Safety response to the extended power outage in the County to include EOC operations, mass care, sheltering, and feeding.
Scot Brooks - Moore County Public Safety - EM Division Chief / Deputy Director of Public Safety
Scot Brooks serves as the Moore County Deputy Director of Public Safety. He is responsible for the administration and operations oversight for the departments Emergency Medical Services division, E911 division, and the Emergency Management division. Mr. Brooks has over 30 years of emergency services experience in North Carolina. His credentials include Certified Emergency Manager (CEM), North Carolina Executive Level Emergency Management Coordinator, NC Paramedic certification, Critical Care Paramedic certification, Nationally Registered Paramedic, Communications Center Manager and Technical Rescue Instructor as well as serving as a member of North Carolina All Hazards Incident Management Team.
Bryan Phillips - Moore County Public Safety - Director of Public Safety
Bryan Phillips serves as the Director of Moore County Public Safety. Responsible for the overall administrative, operational and budget for the four divisions within Public Safety: Emergency Medical Services, E-911, Emergency Management and County Fire Marshal. Bryan has 30 years of experience in emergency services within Moore County. Credentials includes: North Carolina Executive Level Emergency Management Coordinator, NC Paramedic certification, Nationally Registered Paramedic, Communications Center Manager, North Carolina Fire Prevention Level III, Accelerant Canine Handler-K9Star, North Carolina and IAAI Fire Investigation Technician, and a member of the North Carolina All Hazards Incident Management Team.
Since 2019, the North Carolina Joint Cybersecurity Task Force (JCTF) has assisted state and local government entities with Incident Response during cyber events, and additionally, has provided technical assistance to our state government, local government, and Critical Infrastructure partners. The JCTF has helped identify and implement cybersecurity best practices across the state. The
JCTF was formally established on March 16, 2022, via Executive Order No. 254, which identifies JCTF members, to include N.C. Emergency Management, N.C. National Guard, N.C. Department of Information Technology, and N.C. Local Government Information Systems Association Cybersecurity Strike Team, along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Secret Service, and
Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency. During this session, JCTF members will provide an overview of their efforts to date and plans moving forward.
Tom McGrath - NC DPS - Division of Emergency Management - Deputy Homeland Security Chief
The JCTF was formally established on March 16, 2022, via Executive Order No. 254, which identifies JCTF members, to include N.C. Emergency Management, N.C. National Guard, N.C. Department of Information Technology, and N.C. Local Government Information Systems Association Cybersecurity Strike Team, along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Secret Service, and
Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency.
Lisa Dillard - CDC
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