Creative Writing: Descriptive Coding

QUESTION

ASSIGNMENT 3.C: Design a semi-structured interview with Pablo Mendez (Emergency Management Coordinator) to evaluate Emergency Preparedness at UTRGV.

• Questions for Mr. Mendez Interview

1. Interviewer: You are in charge of a sensitive department at the UTRGV. I would like to know how important you consider your work to be to the whole UTRGV community.
2. Interviewer: Previously, UTRGV has had emergency situations, some of which led to multiple injuries. What is your take on the risk levels of the emergency situations that have occurred in the past?
3. Interviewer: Proper management of emergency situations requires an institution to be well-equipped with human, financial and technological resources to mitigate possible hazards. What do you consider to be UTRGV’s level of preparedness in handling these situations?
4. Interviewer: As an important figure in managing emergencies at UTRGV, I would like to you to share with me some of the challenges that you have experienced in previous incidents. Have these challenges been addressed so far?
5. Interviewer: Other than acquisition of resources and regular training, what other measures does your department put in place to ensure that in case of any eventualities, the fatalities recorded remain at zero?
6. Interviewer: I appreciate your cooperation in this session. Just to follow up, would you mind sharing with me the main components of your emergency preparedness checklist? I would appreciate if you took me through every component in brief.
7. Interviewer: To what extent would you assure students that UTRGV is a safe place to learn? What do they need to know about emergency handling?
8. Interviewer: As an expert in emergency handling, what is your take on the use of technology in curbing the risk levels associated with the emergency situations? What is UTRGV’s take on the issue?
9. Interviewer: You have been in the department for quite a while now. Could you please tell me about how the department coordinates its activities? Do you have an operational structure? Does this structure change during emergencies?

Interviewer: Thank you for taking part in this interview. Your answers have been extremely useful.

ANSWER

Creative Writing: Descriptive Coding

Descriptive Coding

An interview with the individual in charge of the emergency management at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Pablo Mendez, aims at identifying the various procedures put in place and the level of preparedness for emergencies in the institution (The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, n.d.). By interviewing the emergency management coordinator at the institution, the interviewer is able to identify the various issues that affect emergency management and the challenges that the institution faces in the quest to handle emergencies. The questions posed to the emergency management coordinator are meant to engage him in a conversation that brings to light the various aspects of emergency management in a learning institution. The interviewer begins by asking Pablo Mendez how important he considers his work to be to the entire UTRGV community.

This question is meant to identify whether the emergency management coordinator understands the purpose of his job and to provide an understanding of how much he values his purpose at the institution. The interviewer expects an answer that provides information on the purpose of the interviewee in the institution. The interviewer then asks Pablo about the emergency situations that have occurred in the institution in the past and resulted in injuries. The interviewer aims to understand Pablo’s take on the level of risk of emergency situations that occur in the institution. Identifying the level of risk is important for the preparation activities for future emergencies. Pablo responds by giving an example of an emergency situation when a suspicious package was identified in the Edinburg campus. The evacuation of students and staff was handled in a coordinated manner, and there were no injuries. The only problem identified was that some students did not carry their IDs when evacuating. This was solved by making arrangements to allow them to access facilities without their IDs while the issue was being solved.

The question on the level of preparedness of UTRGV for emergencies is relevant since it seeks to get information about the resource availability for handling emergency situations in the institution. The interviewee will provide a response that will shed light on how well the institution is equipped for handling emergencies. The human, technological, and financial resources of the emergency response department in the university will be assessed from the interviewee’s response. Pablo responds by identifying that there are personnel challenges within the emergency department, stating that they still manage what they can do even though more personnel would ease work. The interviewer then asks Pablo to share a number of the challenges that he has faced in the previous emergency incidences, and how the challenges faced were addressed. The interviewee will provide information that will be helpful in determining areas of improvement in the emergency management area in the university. The improvement area identified by Pablo in the response was the need for an increase in the personnel.

The question of the measures that the emergency department has put in place to minimize the effects of emergencies and to ensure that there are no fatalities when emergencies occur is also very important since the response provided by the interviewee will inform the interviewer on how well the department handles emergencies, and if the methods of handling are able to prevent fatalities. Pablo responds by explaining activities such as increasing the emergency annexes and developing exercises for the various emergency situations to increase the level of preparedness. The interviewer then requests the emergency department coordinator to list the items in his checklist for emergency preparedness, to determine the main aspects of emergency management. The interviewer goes on to probe the interviewee to determine the level of safety that the department assures the students of the institution.

This question is meant to weigh the level of safety in the institution in order to provide a guarantee to the students. It also aims to identify if the effectiveness of the emergency department in managing emergencies in the institution. The interviewee will also provide information on what students need to do or know about handling emergencies. The interviewer’s question on the use of technology aims at identifying the role that technology plays in the management of emergencies in UTRGV. The interviewer also asks about the activities of the department to acquire information on the emergency management-related activities in the institution. Pablo responds by explaining programs that the department has put in place to prepare and train students on handling emergencies, such as the Crisis Communication program on “who calls who”. He also explains that the department partners with other institutions such as the local hospitals and the police to improve emergency response.

References

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2018, from https://www.utrgv.edu/emergencypreparedness/.