Institutionalization of EMT SOP as part of the ASEAN Regional Cooperation Mechanism on Disaster Management

Background/Introduction:The Standard Operating Procedure for Coordination of Emergency Medical Teams in ASEAN (EMT SOP) was developed to facilitate the swift deployment of I-EMTs by ASEAN Member States (AMS) to disaster-affected countries in the ASEAN region and to effectively provide appropriate medical services to the affected population. It is one of the various products and activities by the ARCH Project, which was implemented in collaboration between ASEAN and Japan from 2016 through 2021. The EMT SOP was developed in line with the WHO EMT Initiative, and various WHO forms have been incorporated as ASEAN official forms for the management and coordination of I-EMT.Objectives:On the other hand, disaster management in ASEAN is conducted by National Disaster Management Organization (NDMO) of each AMS under the coordination of the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA Centre) in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedure for Regional Standby Arrangements and Coordination of Joint Disaster Relief and Emergency Response Operations (SASOP), the sole official document for ASEAN regional collaboration in disasters, and AMS I-EMTs are required to follow the SASOP for their deployment to the affected AMS.Method/Description:Discussions were held between the NDMOs and MOHs, and a table-top exercise to test the EMT SOP was conducted involving NDMOs and MOHs with the facilitation of the AHA Centre.Results/Outcomes:The EMT SOP has been incorporated as an additional chapter of the SASOP.Conclusion:The institutionalization of the EMT SOP is an important milestone in strengthening the ASEAN regional cooperation mechanism on disaster management.