Emergency management in primary care: Summer preparedness

Resource List

Emergency Management in Primary Care - Presentation slides

Emergency Management Summer Preparedness Checklist 2026-27

Resource Description

This 1-hour webinar presented by Primary Health Tasmania was on preparing practices for the challenges of the 2026/27 summer season.

Participants heard from the Tasmanian Department of Health’s Emergency Preparedness Response Unit and Communicable Disease Prevention Unit as they explored seasonal hazards, communicable disease risks, immunisation preparedness and emerging threats relevant to primary care.

This session provided practical guidance to strengthen business agility when considering continuity planning, maintain continuity of care during disruptions, support community resilience, and align emergency preparedness activities with the RACGP Standards for General Practices (6th Edition).

Learning outcomes:

Describe the current emergency risk landscape in Tasmania, including seasonal hazards and emerging threats relevant to primary care.
Explain the respective roles of the Emergency Preparedness Response Unit and primary care providers in supporting emergency preparedness, response, and recovery.
Describe how immunisation and communicable disease prevention contribute to community protection and health system resilience during emergencies.
Identify strategies to enhance organisational preparedness and business continuity, including communication, workforce planning, information systems, essential supplies, and continuity of patient care.

Speaker information:

Alice Wanders - Manager Emergency Management with the Tasmania’s Department of Health; Emergency Preparedness Response Unit (EPRU).
Dr. Laura Edwards - Specialist Medical Advisor with the Tasmanian Department of Health; Communicable Disease Prevention Unit (CDPU).
Emma Atterbury – Lead, Practice Improvement, Primary Health Tasmania

Alice Wanders is the A/Director of Emergency Management with Tasmania’s Department of Health, where she supports whole-of-agency emergency management programs, leads capability-building initiatives, and provides strategic advice on preparedness, response, and resilience across the Tasmanian health system. She is currently leading the development of the Department’s exercising, training, and lessons management systems.

Dr. Laura Edwards is a Specialist Medical Advisor in the Communicable Disease Prevention Unit. She is a General Practitioner and Public Health Physician and has worked in a range of clinical and public health settings in the Northern Territory and Tasmania. She also conducts research on vaccine and antiviral effectiveness against acute respiratory infections.

Emma Atterbury is a Lead in the Practice Improvement team at Primary Health Tasmania. She is a primary care clinician and leads work to support the primary care workforce here in Tasmania, working across multiple portfolio's of work including emergency management, immunisation and allied health.

Resource list:

Bushfire Smoke

Centre for Safe Air - https://safeair.org.au/

Bushfire Smoke Health Plan - https://safeair.org.au/bushfire-smoke-health-plan/

Bushfire Smoke Asthma Plan - https://safeair.org.au/bushfire-smoke-asthma-plan/

Air Quality

EPA Tasmania Real-Time Air Quality Monitoring - https://epa.tas.gov.au/environment/air/monitoring-air-pollution/monitoring-data/real-time-air-quality-data-for-tasmania/all-sites-table

AirRater - https://airrater.org/

Heatwaves

Tasmanian Department of Health – Hot Weather and Heatwaves - https://www.health.tas.gov.au/health-topics/environmental-health/hot-weather-and-heatwaves

Victorian Department of Health – Extreme Heat Information for Clinicians - https://www.health.vic.gov.au/environmental-health/extreme-heat-information-for-clinicians

Bushfire Smoke