Publication: Challenges of Logistical Management During The Flood Disaster in Malaysia
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Date
2015
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Abstract
Institute for Public Health Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC-IPH) was established and given the task of logistic management during the major flood disaster in Malaysia on the eve of 2015 new year. The objective of this paper is to share the experience and challenges faced in the process. Upon establishment, CPRC-IPH recruited its members, set up a designated flood operation room, created an inventory of stand-by vehicles, deployed them to flooded areas for aids, monitored their activities thoughout, devised the idea of vehicle-day to quantify the intensity of involvement of the stand-by vehicles provided by different parties, and submitted feedback daily to Ministry of Health Malaysia Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC-KKM) in Putrajaya. The result wasa 22-member team running CPRC-IPH for 20 days, different tasks outlined in the terms of reference. Eighty-seven (87) vehicles were on stand-by, of which 55 were from various agencies under Ministry of Health (MOH) Malaysia, 15 from concessionaries, and 17 from a private rental company. In total, 281 vehicle-days were completed throughout the period; out of which 39 vehicle-days were contributed by MOH vehicles, 124 by concessionaries, and 118 were rented. On average, around 14 cars were deployed each day with two from MOH. This greatly reduced the impact to the exisiting core business of the participating MOH agencies. Three challenges faced by CPRC-IPH in the process were shortage of vehicle supply, communication breakdown, and difficulties in monitoring. Government private partnership, establishment of standard operation procedure for disaster management, prior structured training for CPRC members, utilisation of diverse information systems, and creative simplification of quantifying measurement were the keys in solving the problems faced. In conclusion, CPRC-IPH fulfilled the logistic management successfully. It is hoped that its experience may help to improve the logistic management for flood disaster in the future.
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Keywords
Logistic management, Flood disaster, CPRC, Malaysia