A process approach to emergency planning for major incidents in the health sector

Les Moseley is the founder and Director of the Coventry Centre for Disaster Management and with colleagues at Coventry University has recently developed undergraduate and post‐graduate degrees and a range of certificates and diplomas to support professional development in emergency management. This paper examines the type and format of emergency plans used to respond to major incidents within the health sector. It expounds the virtue of adopting a process approach to emergency planning to ensure that thorough and rigorous planning is carried out. The paper gives a brief overview of emergency plan types before introducing and expanding on the proposed process. The author does not try to impose a particular type of plan or distinguish between the various health‐related functions/organizations or localities but stresses the need for consistency regardless of what type of emergency plan is required.