Optimization of information management in emergency situations

Abstract

The efficiency of information management determines the success of activities in emergency situations. An efficient and resilient system for planning, collection, processing and dissemination of information reduces the total time for decision making and increases response time of the system focused on further expansion, prevention, and mitigating the consequences of adverse events. The decision maker must be placed in a favorable information framework for deciding in order to work in conditions of certainty or at reduced risk. The successfully organized system of management of information should be based on the following principles: well defined competencies, coordination, orientation, accuracy, continuity, initiative, availability and timeliness. Optimizing the management of information in emergency situations leads to significant savings of the total time for decision making process and provides more time for active response of different services on the ground. The development of technology has caused the automation part of the response system (the principle of the trigger) and almost excluded the human from decision-making processes. But, in the reality it is practically impossible to automate all reactions in emergency situations, especially when we speak about large-scale catastrophes leading to situations known as multi-risk ones. The effectiveness of management information depends on the total amount of time that the system needs to gather the necessary information to make optimal decisions.