S98-2
THE EVOLVING PROFESSION OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

This session considered the evolving profession of emergency management from several distinct perspectives. Significant elements of this evolution have included:

• the increase in the number of academic degree programs for emergency management, both undergraduate and graduate;
• specialized training initiatives emphasizing leadership and management competencies;
• increased interest in program accreditation, certification, professional standards, and performance measurement;
• increased diversity within the profession, with more disciplines or specialized groups participating;
• increased participation by the business sector; and
• more professionals seeking emergency management as a first career choice.

Some common themes related to areas needing improvement included the need for a more systematic way for practitioners/researchers to both identify and apply useful (practical) research, and improved collaboration to solve problems and design effective training and education programs. Information dissemination was reported to continue to be problematic. Another stated need included improved accountability for evaluation and application of corrective action as a necessary outgrowth of "lessons learned." Finally, problems of a lack of a clear definition for emergency management and isolation (particularly at the local level) were noted by participants.

Participants were invited to a follow-up session later in the day to begin to design a strategy to address the above considerations.

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August 28, 1998