After a disaster or other emergency, stakeholders should gather together in a structured but open environment for a debriefing session with the purpose of identifying improvements in policies, procedures, and actions. During this after-action review, the team will discuss all event-related activity in order to improve planning, mitigation, response, and recovery measures based on lessons learned from the event.

The value of the debriefing session is almost limitless. It will allow all stakeholders to identify strengths and areas for improvement through a review of the effectiveness of preparedness and planning efforts for such an event. Corrective actions and lessons learned will be identified to create opportunities for improvement. In no event, in no incident, and in no community will there ever be incident activity without opportunity for improvement.

Select the link provided to learn more about event-related activities that should be discussed in the after-action review meeting.