CERT-Community Emergency Response Team Overview

Starting & Maintaining A CERT Program

CERT Team Field Operating Guide

IG-317 - Community Emergency Response Team - Instructor Guide

COURSE OVERVIEW AND OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Training is to provide the private citizens who complete this course with the basic skills that they will need to respond to their community’s immediate needs in the aftermath of a disaster, when emergency services are not immediately available. By working together, CERTs can assist in saving lives and protecting property using the basic techniques in this course.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

Upon completing this course, the participants should be able to:

1. Describe the types of hazards that are most likely to affect their homes and communities.
2. Describe the functions of CERTs and their role in immediate response.
3. Take steps to prepare themselves for a disaster.
4. Identify and reduce potential fire hazards in their homes or workplaces.
5. Work as a team to apply basic fire suppression strategies, resources, and safety measures to extinguish a pan fire.
6. Apply techniques for opening airways, controlling bleeding, and treating for shock.
7. Conduct triage under simulated disaster conditions.
8. Perform head-to-toe patient assessments.
9. Select and set up a treatment area.
10. Employ basic treatments for various wounds, and apply splints to suspected fractures and sprains.
11. Identify planning and sizeup requirements for potential search and rescue situations.
12. Describe the most common techniques for searching a structure.
13. Work as a team to apply safe techniques for debris removal and victim extrication.
14. Describe ways to protect rescuers during search and rescue operations.
15. Describe the post-disaster emotional environment and the steps that rescuers can take to relieve their own stressors and those of disaster survivors.
16. Describe CERT organization and documentation requirements.

APPENDIX 1-A: HAZARD LESSON PLANS

Book 1

Book 2

SM-317 - Community Emergency Response Team - Participant Manual

From the INTRODUCTION

WHEN DISASTER STRIKES

The damage caused by natural disasters and man-made events such as earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, flooding, and terrorism can affect all elements of society and government. These events:

• Severely restrict or overwhelm our response resources, communications, transportation, and utilities.
• Leave many individuals and neighborhoods cut off from outside support.

It takes time for emergency response agencies to set up and prepare for an organized response, and damaged roads and disrupted communications systems may restrict their access into critically affected areas. Thus, for the initial period immediately following a disaster⎯often up to 3 days or longer⎯individuals, households, and neighborhoods may need to rely on their own resources for:

• Food.
• Water.
• First aid.
• Shelter.

Individual preparedness, planning, survival skills, and mutual aid within neighborhoods and worksites during this initial period are essential measures in coping with the aftermath of a disaster.

CERT Training the Trainer (TTT) Video - Classroom Connection, Disaster Medical Operations

The TTT material is intended for CERT instructors. However, individuals who have completed CERT training can use the video as a refresher about medical skills.

These training videos are in Real Media format. If you do not have Real Player installed on your computer, it is included on the CD