Laboratories: Preparedness Planning, Continuity of Operations Planning, and Disaster Response Lessons Learned
You may recall my blog post "Evacuation of a Health Care Facility: When Disaster Strikes" that shared some great articles from The Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response—Technical Resources, Assistance Center, and Information Exchange (ASPR-TRACIE) newsletter. After that blog posting, I had the opportunity to speak with Shayne Brannman, Director of ASPR-TRACIE, and her team regarding clinical laboratories and how they plan for and respond to disasters. It was an exciting discussion of the unique challenges facing laboratories, their staffs, facilities, resources, and interdependencies. The ASPR-TRACIE team researched and prepared the following collection of resources and articles related to mitigating loss/continuity of operations in laboratories, including articles discussing loss during a disaster. The team members conducted research on laboratory continuity of operations plans (COOPs) and templates, which are provided in the first section of this document (see the ASPR TRACIE COOP Topic Collection). The second section includes general laboratory preparedness and recovery resources. And the third section focuses on articles discussing lessons learned from clinical laboratories following a disaster.
Many thanks to the ASPR-TRACIE team for identifying and collecting these great resources so that I can share them with you. Pass along the information you find useful so that we can spread the word about laboratory preparedness and resilience.
Be sure to check out the ASPR-TRACIE website for a wealth of information and resources—you’ll be glad you did.
Laboratory COOP Templates and Resources
- Association of Public Health Laboratories (2015). A Practical Guide to Dealing with Laboratory Floods.
This document provides planning, response, and recovery actions for labs that have flooded.
- Sambol, T. (2006). Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP): Preparing for the Unknown. APHL 2006 Annual Meeting. Association of Public Health Laboratories.
This presentation was given at the Association of Public Health Laboratories 2006 Annual Meeting. Although outdated and specific to state public health laboratories, it provides key concepts and considerations related to continuity of operations planning that may be adapted for current use.
- Yale Emergency Management (n.d.). Business Continuity Planning Guide for Laboratories. (Accessed 05/18/2018).
This document provides an overview of key continuity of operations issues faced by the laboratory community. It is designed to aid principal investigators in considering the additional protection and steps that should be taken to protect laboratory personnel and the other functions being conducted. Although many of the elements are common to academic teaching and support departments, some are highly specific to laboratories, and their successful preparedness requires specialized emergency resources and planning.
Additional Resources–General Laboratory Preparedness Resources
- AABB (2008). Disaster Operations Handbook: Coordinating the Nation's Blood Supply During Disasters and Biological Events. (Version 2).
This handbook was created to help blood centers, hospital blood banks, and transfusion services plan for naturally and human-caused disasters that can affect the blood supply. It can help the appropriate officials determine the medical need for blood, effectively transport it from one facility to another, and communicate internally and externally about the status of the blood supply.
- National Research Council Committee on Prudent Practices in the laboratory (2011). Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Management of Chemical Hazards: Updated Version.
Chapter 3 on Emergency Planning includes information on consequences of different types of emergencies on laboratory operations. It discusses preplanning, leadership and priorities, essential personnel, communications, evacuations, shelter in place, loss of power, building closure, and fire loss.
- Stony Brook University (n.d.). Laboratory Emergency Plan.
This page includes an overview of what a laboratory plan should include along with templates and checklists for hurricane and fire safety.
Laboratory Disaster Response Lessons Learned
- National Academy of Sciences (2017). Strengthening the Disaster Resilience of the Academic Biomedical Research Community: Protecting the Nation's Investment. National Academies Press.
Chapter 6 of this document focuses on response and recovery planning. Laboratories are mentioned in a few areas of this section to include case studies on laboratory resilience assessments, essential functions, and short- and long-term expectations.
- Scungio, D. (2014). Disaster and the laboratory: preparation, response, and recovery. Medical Laboratory Observer.
This article provides case studies of disasters and how they have affected clinical labs. It outlines some of the guidelines available to help with plan development and response lessons learned.
- Taylor, K., George, P. Deely, J. (2014). Laboratory Turnaround Times in Response to an Abrupt Increase in Specimen Testing After a Natural Disaster. American Journal of Clinical Pathology, Volume 142, Issue 1.
This article discusses the key indicators that change during extreme circumstances that could help laboratories maintain standards when responding to a disaster. It includes a case study of laboratories during and after an earthquake.
