UNCT Pandemic Simulation Introduction



Introduction for Facilitators

1 TTX Pandemic Simulation

|I. OVERVIEW |

|What Is It? |The TTX Pandemic Influenza Simulation is a package which uses a progressive pandemic scenario together |

| |with group specific injects to enable participants to better understand the potential impact of a |

| |pandemic with the aim of facilitating appropriate contingency planning and preparedness actions. |

| | |

| |By exposing participants to a range of pandemic scenarios, the package also raises the level of awareness|

| |and understanding of the impact of a future influenza pandemic. |

| | |

| |The TTX simulation package differs to the office-based Functional Simulation in a number of ways: |

| |It is not a test of a contingency plan or other specific preparedness measures: |

| |The key outcomes are aimed at assisting in the preparedness process, rather than testing of preparedness |

| |measure: |

| |There is greater flexibility with regards to time and also numbers and profile of participants. |

| | |

|A pandemic is different |An influenza pandemic will be unlike any crisis and will have a direct impact on our ability to continue |

| |to perform essential services. It will also have a direct impact on our staff and their families, some |

| |of them may die. |

| |While a flood may impact a predictable part of a community, pandemic influenza can reach every family. |

| |All segments of a population may be affected including health and emergency workers and elected |

| |officials. |

| |Whereas an earthquake occurs suddenly, a pandemic will develop over time and may arrive in two or more |

| |waves over a period of many months or years. |

| |A conflict that impacts one region will leave others intact and able to provide mutual aid to the |

| |affected community. Pandemic influenza may affect all regions at once and may be national in scope. |

| |Little or no help should be expected from outsiders. |

| | |

| |Therefore, there is strong vested interest to learn what may happen and to prepare for it in advance. The|

| |best preparedness is to realistically think through potential scenarios and to be prepared for a range of|

| |possibilities both personally and professionally. |

| | |

|Objectives |The objectives of the pandemic influenza simulation are to: |

| | |

| |Raise the level of awareness of an influenza pandemic and the impact that it might have on staff health /|

| |safety and continuity of business. |

| |Understand through the use of scenarios the key requirements for preparedness measures to ensure health /|

| |safety of staff and continuity of essential services during pandemic. |

| |Plan for possible additional requirements to support national pandemic preparedness actions. |

|Outcomes |As a result of the simulation and debriefing activities, participants should: |

| | |

| |Identify the main risks a future pandemic will pose to their organisations specific business continuity. |

| |Better understand the roles/responsibilities and methodologies to work with counterparts and other |

| |external partners. |

| |Understand better what actions they might need to take in respect of staff within their own organisation |

| |in the event of a pandemic. |

| |Be familiar with guidelines, documentation, and tools available to assist in the pandemic contingency |

| |planning and preparedness. |

| |Identify and agree on next steps to ensure preparedness. |

| |Strengthen team building for managing pandemic response and other emergencies among participants. |

|II. SIMULATION STRUCTURE |

|Elements of the Scenario |The events portrayed in the TTX Simulation unfold over a period of 8 weeks. The actual timeframe of the |

| |outbreak and evolution of an influenza pandemic could be slower or faster, depending on the nature of the|

| |virus and the particular circumstances of the outbreak. |

| | |

| |The simulation begins with a series of unconfirmed reports of a respiratory illness in a country in the |

| |same region (but not sharing a border); this is rapidly confirmed as a novel influenza virus leading to a|

| |containment operation by the affected country. The containment operation fails to prevent the spread of |

| |the virus, which within 5 weeks of the initial outbreak becomes pandemic. The final two weeks of the |

| |simulation are developed under global pandemic conditions. |

| | |

| |Elements of the Scenario include: |

| |Reports of people getting sick with influenza like symptoms |

| |Initial human-to-human transmission limited to a specific area but high mortality rates |

| |Travel within the affected area restricted due to national containment policies |

| |Spread of the virus causing a global pandemic |

| |Deterioration in essential services |

| |High demand on medical facilities and supplies |

| |Humanitarian operations are disrupted |

| |Civil unrest |

| |Sickness and death of staff members |

|Scenario Adapted to the |The simulation package consists if a pandemic scenarios which is broken down into three episodes. For |

|Country |each episode, there are then a series of specific injects and questions to lead the discussion process. |

| |The TTX currently contains two inject packages, one for humanitarian country teams and one for |

| |Governments. In order to provide a realistic context for the simulation, the scenario and relevant |

| |inject package must be adapted the country specific context, and incorporate the following elements: |

| | |

| |Nature of the groups presences and activities |

| |Group structure |

| |National scenarios and plans |

| |Impact on livelihoods, travel, communities, health services, security |

| |National response including key containment and mitigation actions likely to take place |

| |Media response |

| |Regional and international responses |

| |Impact on vulnerable groups |

| | |

| |This adaptation is essential for the success of the exercise; this is what makes the simulation ‘real’ to|

| |participants and makes the simulation effort worthwhile. |

| | |

| |The facilitators are responsible for adapting the simulation materials; this should be done in close |

| |collaboration of a WHO or CDC country representative (an epidemiologist if possible) in order to ensure |

| |accurate technical input relevant to the country. |

|Simulation Timeframe |The full TTX simulation package is designed to take place over the course of a full day. Four hours in |

| |the morning are used for a short introduction followed by the simulation. A further 3 hours are then |

| |required for the de-briefing. An advisory agenda is provided in chapter 1.3 of the simulation package. |

|III. TARGET AUDIENCE |

|Primary Target Audience |This package is primarily targeted at Government and Humanitarian / UN Country Teams, where both are |

| |present, it is advised to slit into two groups in order to ensure that participants get the most out of |

| |the injects and discussion points. |

| | |

| |In the case of Humanitarian / UN Country Teams, depending on the number of organisations participating, |

| |this might imply 1-2 participants for each agencies expected to play a significant role (IFRC, |

| |Implementing NGO’s, UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP and WHO etc.) and 1 participants for the other agencies. |

| | |

| |To maximize the impact of the simulation, the following should be present: |

| |The UN Resident Coordinator (RC) |

| |Heads of Agencies (UN and NGO) |

| |Senior Operations Officers (including Finance, Admin, HR, ICT and Procurement functions) |

| |Senior Programme Officers and/or Sector Heads |

| |Information/Communication Officers |

| |UN Medical Doctor/ Chief Medical Officer |

| |UNDSS Security Officer |

| | |

| |Heads of Agencies will be responsible for nominating members of their team to participate. The ideal |

| |number of participants should be based on a ratio of a maximum of 20 participants per facilitator. |

| |Depending on the number of facilitators available, the RC may need to prioritise attendance based on the |

| |specific objectives. |

| | |

| |In the case of a Government simulation, participation should come from senior representatives of all line|

| |ministries and under the leadership of the Ministry of Health and relevant National Disaster Management |

| |structure. |

| | |

|Regional Participation |Where applicable, Regional support / coordinating structures should be involved. This is particularly |

| |relevant where regional structures play a key role in the overall business continuity of the Humanitarian|

| |country team. |

|IV. FACILITATOR REQUIREMENTS |

|Facilitation Team |The TTX Simulation is run by a Lead Facilitator, this person will be responsible for the adaptation of |

|Composition |the materials to the national context, the delivery of the package and subsequent de-briefing. The lead |

| |facilitator will need to be supported by the following: |

| |UNCT AHI Focal Point (if not the lead facilitator) |

| |WHO Country Representative |

| |Emergency Officer (belonging to WHO or an another agency) |

| |This team should also be supported by the OCHA Pandemic Regional Planning Office (RPO). The number of |

| |facilitators will be determined by the number of participants, this however should not be greater than 20|

| |Participants to 1 Facilitator. |

| | |

| |The support of an Admin Assistant is also useful for a number of practical tasks before and during the |

| |simulation. |

|WHO’s role |WHO’s involvement is key to the success of the exercise. A WHO representative (ideally the WHO Pandemic |

| |Influenza focal point) should provide direct advice in the adaptation of the scenarios and injects to the|

| |local context. |

|Regional Inter-agency |Although the package includes detailed guidance for the facilitation team on how to prepare for and |

|Facilitation Roster |conduct the simulation, the lead facilitator may require some additional support in conducting this |

| |exercise. Such support should be requested through the OCHA Regional Pandemic planning Officer. |

|Facilitators Task |The facilitation team will be responsible for the following tasks: |

| |Adapt the materials to the country specific context |

| |Complete the practical arrangements (invite participants, office space, IT set up, lunch, etc..) |

| |Run the pack including the presentation of each scenario and subsequent injects |

| |Stimulate the discussion process by asking specific leading questions |

| |Observe the group dynamics and assess how the group is achieving the objectives of the exercise |

| |Prepare for the debriefing by assessing the substance of the work undertaken during the simulation |

|V. ORGANISATIONAL REQUIREMENTS |

|Support and Commitment of |The full support and commitment of the Resident Coordinator and the various Heads of Agencies are |

|the Government / RC and UN |critical to the success of the simulation. They will need to approve conducting the simulation and to |

|/NGO Heads of Agencies |provide their insights on the preparedness prior to the simulation. Additionally, their participation in|

| |the simulation and the following debriefing exercise is crucial for the success of the simulation. |

| | |

| |The results of the simulation should enable the Resident Coordinator and the various Heads of Agencies to|

| |take corrective actions if needed and should strengthen team building among Country Team members to |

| |better manage future emergencies. |

|Time commitment |Involvement of the facilitation team in the preparatory work, including the adaptation of the scenario |

| |and practical arrangements (1-2 day/s) |

| |Participation of participants in the simulation (3-4 hours) |

| |Participation of participants in the debriefing (3 hours) |

|Facilitator action check |The following list provides an indication of the actions required to be undertaken by the facilitator in |

|list |order to prepare and deliver the full package. |

| | |

| |Invitation sent to all Participants of Agencies, this should go from the RC and also include a revised |

| |Participants Instruction as per chapter 1.2 of the TTX Simulation package: 2-3 days prior to the |

| |simulation |

| |Logistical / administration arraignments in accordance with the instructions contained in this document: |

| |3 weeks prior to the simulation |

| |Adaptation of the package to fit the country context in collaboration with a WHO country team member. |

| |This will include the revision of the scenarios and injects: 2-3 days prior to the simulation |

| |Meeting with RC to provide a final briefing on the running of the simulation: 1-2 days before the |

| |simulation |

| |Setup of the room: Day before the simulation |

| |Materials to be printed (one per participant): Day before the simulation |

| |Scenario sheets (one per participant) |

| |Participant evaluation sheet (one per participant) |

| |UN Medical Services Staff Contingency Planning Guidelines for an Influenza Pandemic (3-4 copies) |

| |UN Administrative Guidelines for an Influenza Pandemic (3-4 copies) |

| |Pandemic Planning and Preparedness Guidelines for the UN System (3-4 copies) |

| |National Pandemic Contingency Plans (3-4 copies) |

| | |

|Resources required |A large room with a central conference table that is able to seat up to 20 participants. |

| |An overhead protector and screen (if participants are split into groups additional projectors and screens|

| |maybe required). |

| |One flip chart and marker pens per group. |

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