Under a cooperative agreement with FEMA, the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) has launched a free first-of-its-kind integrative training that covers the development and maintenance of pre-incident plans ensuring the efficient distribution of patients, the sharing of information and resources, and the coordination between state and local agencies with hospitals and others responding to the medical needs of disaster victims.

Additional topics include patient and resource tracking, credentialing systems, deployable federal resources, principles of community emergency planning, and more. This course is directed toward those working in emergency management agencies and healthcare organizations, especially in small communities and rural areas, which have primary job responsibilities other than disaster preparedness. It is also useful for those in public health, EMS, fire services, and other organizations involved in disaster preparedness. The four-hour online training is part of a training portal that has several components to it. Each state has its own virtual community to foster collaboration. Each virtual community includes a members section, the training modules, a Q&A section and a Forum section. For more information, go to http://www.acep.org.