Serve as the conduit for information to internal and external stakeholders, including staff, visitors and families, and the news media, as approved by the Incident
Commander.
Update Secondary Person Responsible:
Documents/Tools:
• Incident Action Plan
• Crisis and emergency risk communication plan (Facility, and if available, community plan)
• Hospital organization chart
• Hospital telephone directory
• Radio/satellite phone
• Community and governmental PIO and Joint Information Center contact information
• Local media contact information
1. Receive appointment and briefing from the Incident Commander.
2. Read this entire Job Action Sheet and review incident management team chart (HICS Form 207). Put on position identification.
3. Notify your usual supervisor of your HICS assignment. 4. Activate the facility communications and risk communications plan, policies and procedures.
5. Establish a designated media staging and media briefing area located away from the HCC and patient care activity areas. Inform on-site media of the physical areas to which they have access and those which are restricted. Coordinate designation of such areas with the Safety Officer and the Security Branch Director.
6. Contact external Public Information Officers from community and governmental agencies to as certain and collaborate public information and media messages being developed by those entities to ensure consistent and collaborative messages from all entities.
7. Consider need to deploy PIO to local Joint Information Center, if activated.
8. Develop public information and media messages to be reviewed and approved by the Incident Commander before release to the news media and the public. Identify appropriate spokespersons to deliver the press briefings and public information announcements.
9. Attend all command briefings and incident action planning meetings to gather and share incident and hospital information.
10. Conduct or assign personnel to monitor and report to you incident and response information from sources such as the internet, radio, television and newspapers.
11. Request one or more recorders and other support staff as needed from the Labor Pool & Credentialing Unit Leader, if activated, to perform all necessary activities and
documentation.
12. Document all key activities, actions, and decisions in an Operational Log (HICS Form 214) on a continual basis.
13. Document all communications (internal and external) on an Incident Message Form (HICS Form 213). Provide a copy of the Incident Message Form to the Documentation Unit.
Ongoing Duties:
1. Continue to attend all Command briefings and incident action planning meetings to gather and share incident and hospital information. Contribute media and public information activities and goals to the Incident Action Plan.
2. Continue contact and dialogue with external Public Information Officers, in collaboration with the Liaison Officer, from community and governmental agencies to ascertain public information and media messages being developed by those entities to ensure consistent
and collaborative messages from the hospital/facility. Coordinate translation of critical communications into multiple languages.
3. Determine whether a local, regional or State Joint Information Center (JIC) is activated, provide support as needed, and coordinate information dissemination.
4. Continue to develop and revise public information and media messages to be reviewed and approved by the Incident Commander before release to the news media and the public.
5. Ensure that media briefings are done in collaboration with JIC, when appropriate.
6. Develop regular information and status update messages to keep staff informed of the incident and community and hospital/facility status in collaboration with the Employee
Health and Well-Being Unit Leader, the Family Care Unit Leader and the Mental Health Unit Leader.
7. Utilize internal hospital communications systems (e.g., email, intranet, internal TV, written report postings, etc.) to disseminate current information and status update messages to staff.
8. Assess the need to activate a staff “hotline” for recorded information concerning the incident and facility status and establish the “hotline” if needed.
9. Issue regular and timely incident information reports to the news media in collaboration with of the Situation Unit Leader and Liaison Officer, to be approved by the Incident Commander. Relay pertinent information received to the Situation Unit Leader and the Liaison Officer.
10. Review the need for updates of critical information through in way finding and signage for staff, visitors and media. Assist in the development and dissemination of signage.
11. Coordinate with the Patient Tracking Manager regarding:
• Receiving and screening inquiries regarding the status of individual patients.
• Release of appropriate information to appropriate requesting entities.
12. Continue to document all actions and observations on the Operational Log (HICS Form 214) on a continual basis.
