Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response (CEPR)

2006 Report of Activities

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CEPR Consolidation 2001-2002

Much of the CEPR initial efforts were focussed on consolidating resources and examining the balance between its resource base and its new mandate. These efforts were complemented by increased staffing and the development of a comprehensive business plan to identify operational gaps and to search for new sources of funding.

Business Planning

The business planning process, launched in the Spring of 2001, began with a review of the federal government, national and international emergency preparedness and response environments, followed by an examination of the Centre's mandate, responsibilities, organizational structure and resource levels. This process assisted the Centre in ensuring that its organizational structure was sound and that it possessed the skill sets, competencies, and decision-making capacities it required to adequately prepare for and respond to public health emergencies.

Making public health security a priority at the federal level

Outreach and coordination initiatives across the federal government in 2001-2002 helped the CEPR to reformulate relationships with strategic public health security partners, including the Department of National Defence, the Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and Emergency Preparedness, Transport Canada, Revenue Canada and Citizenship and Immigration Canada.

Strategic relationship building lay at the core of the CEPR forward-looking approach, designed to allow the Centre to be more proactive in informing the federal emergency response community of the health implications of natural or human-caused disasters and in ensuring that public health is viewed as a top priority in disaster response.

Acceleration of CEPR Activities — September 11^th and beyond

The events of September 11, 2001 led the Centre to fast-track its staffing, budgetary and business planning activities. These accelerated activities included a 50 percent increase in personnel between September and December 2001, the rapid completion of the CEPR business plan, a three-fold increase in the CEPR budget, and a comprehensive infusion of financial resources for fiscal 2002-2003.

Recognition of CEPR Leadership

In the aftermath of September 11, 2001, the CEPR took a greater leadership role in promoting and advancing emergency preparedness and response coordination at the national level. In recognition of this role, the Centre was identified by Health Canada's Deputy Minister in January 2002 as the department's single focal point for emergency preparedness and response activities.

The Centre's leadership role was further enhanced in March 2002 when a special task force of the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers of Health released 31 recommendations for ensuring a strong, coordinated emergency preparedness and response capacity across Canada's health sector. The CEPR was named lead partner in 16 of the recommendations and as a collaborative partner in the remaining 15 recommendations.

Positioning for the future

By the end of fiscal 2001-2002 the CEPR's successful staffing, business planning and coordination initiatives, along with greater recognition of its leadership capabilities among public health security partners, placed the Centre in a strong position to complete its consolidation and to build on key strategic partnerships in 2002-2003.

Capacity building in 2002-2003

The CEPR took significant steps forward in capacity building in 2002-2003 with its completion of a number of internal consolidation activities and its active participation in the development of important national initiatives aimed at increasing integration of emergency preparedness and response activities across Canada. These internal and external initiatives reflected the CEPR's growing leadership role in protecting and enhancing public health security in Canada.

Leadership within the Public Health Agency in 2004

The CEPR move to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) in 2004 provided the Centre with an expanded emergency preparedness and response platform, serving both PHAC and Health Canada, which together form the federal health portfolio. This platform has enabled the CEPR to carry out its national leadership and coordination role in strengthening emergency preparedness and response collaboration across the country.

Outreach and partnership building in 2005

2005 saw the CEPR build on earlier consolidation and capacity building efforts by reaching out to the broader emergency preparedness and response community. This outreach included a significant expansion of EPR partnerships, as well as several initiatives aimed at developing a more collaborative, cohesive and comprehensive network of EPR players at all levels and across all jurisdictions.

Transition and re-alignment in 2006

2006 was a year of significant transition for the CEPR as it reorganized key activity areas and expanded its networking capabilities and collaborative relationships with key emergency preparedness and response partners and stakeholders across government, NGO and voluntary sectors. In line with its growing strategic approach to EPR issues, the Centre created the Office of Program and Business Coordination (OPBC), which is tasked with promoting program development, enhancing CEPR's liaison and coordination capacities, and identifying and acting on new opportunities in emergency preparedness and response.

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