| Course | MPH 520 Disaster Management and Emergency Preparedness |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 3 |
| Paper type | Incident management paper |
| Length | About 1,053 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Master of Public Health |
| Updated | September 2026 |
Free sample paper for MPH 520 Module 3
Command, Coordination and Care: The Incident Command System and the Boston Marathon Response
Student Name
Master of Public Health Program, Aspen University
MPH 520: Disaster Management and Emergency Preparedness
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
Command, Coordination and Care: The Incident Command System and the Boston Marathon Response
When a disaster produces many casualties at once, success depends less on individual heroism than on organization. The incident command system gives responders from many agencies a common structure, language and chain of command. This paper explains the incident command system and the national framework that contains it, then examines how preparation and coordination shaped the medical response to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings.
The National Framework
The National Incident Management System provides a consistent approach for all levels of government, nongovernmental organizations and the private sector to work together in incidents of any size or cause. Its components are resource management, command and coordination, and communications and information management, and it includes the incident command system as the standard on-scene structure (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2017).
The Incident Command System
The incident command system is organized by function rather than by agency. An incident commander, or a unified command when several agencies share authority, sets objectives. General staff sections carry them out.
| Section | Role | Public health example |
|---|---|---|
| Command | Sets objectives and priorities; public information, safety and liaison officers support | Health officer serves in unified command |
| Operations | Carries out tactical work | Mass prophylaxis, environmental sampling, medical surge |
| Planning | Tracks situation and resources; writes incident action plan | Epidemiologists track cases and hospital capacity |
| Logistics | Obtains supplies, facilities and services | Stockpile receipt, staging, transport |
| Finance and administration | Tracks costs, time and reimbursement | Documents overtime for federal reimbursement |
Key Principles
Several principles make the system work: a manageable span of control, usually three to seven people reporting to one supervisor; common terminology; modular organization that expands or contracts with the incident; a single incident action plan for each operational period; and integrated communications. These principles let responders from different agencies work together immediately.
The Boston Marathon Bombings
On April 15, 2013, two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Three people died at the scene, and more than 260 were injured, many with severe limb injuries. The marathon's medical plan, designed for runners with dehydration and heat illness, was suddenly used for blast trauma.
Preparation That Paid Off
Physicians involved in the response described how years of planning mattered. Medical tents near the finish line were staffed by physicians, nurses and athletic trainers; emergency medical services had ambulances staged; hospitals had exercised mass casualty plans; and the region had coordinated plans for distributing patients. Preparations for a large event and experience from exercises allowed rapid triage and transport (Biddinger et al., 2013).
Distributing Patients
Patients were sent to multiple hospitals across the city rather than overwhelming the nearest one. Severely injured patients were transported quickly, and every patient who reached a hospital alive survived. Distributing patients according to hospital capacity and specialty is a core mass casualty principle, and it depends on communication between the scene and hospitals.
Public Health's Role
In events like this, public health officials typically work within unified command, coordinate hospital surge through regional health care coalitions, track casualties and hospital status, communicate with the public, support family reunification and arrange mental health support. Public health also monitors responders' health and provides guidance on environmental hazards such as smoke or debris.
Family Reunification
After a mass casualty event, families flood hospitals and phone lines looking for loved ones. A family assistance center, staffed by public health, hospitals, law enforcement and mental health workers, provides one location for information and support. Planning for reunification in advance prevents hospitals from being overwhelmed with inquiries.
Responder Mental Health
Responders exposed to traumatic scenes are at risk for acute stress and later post-traumatic stress. Plans should include psychological first aid, rotation of staff, check-ins after the event and access to confidential counseling. Leaders who model help-seeking reduce the stigma that keeps responders from using support.
Applying the Lessons to a County Plan
A composite county hosting a large annual festival revised its plan after studying Boston: it added a medical tent staffed for trauma as well as heat illness, preassigned hospital destinations by injury severity, trained volunteers in bleeding control, established a joint information center before the event and identified a family assistance center site. A tabletop exercise with all partners tested the plan.
Common Failures
After-action reports from many incidents identify recurring problems: unclear command when multiple agencies arrive, radios that cannot communicate across agencies, self-deploying volunteers who complicate accountability and hospitals that receive patients without warning. The incident command system addresses these, but only if agencies train together before an event.
Exercises and Drills
Exercises move plans from paper into practice. Tabletop exercises let leaders talk through a scenario and discover gaps in roles. Functional exercises test specific functions, such as hospital notification. Full-scale exercises put responders in the field. After-action reports list strengths and improvements, and improvement plans assign owners and deadlines.
Stop the Bleed and Bystanders
Bystanders were among the first to help in Boston, applying pressure and improvised tourniquets. Programs that train the public in bleeding control extend the response to the minutes before professionals arrive, when many preventable trauma deaths occur. Health departments can promote this training in schools and workplaces.
Public Information
In the incident command system, a public information officer coordinates messages from all agencies through a joint information center. After the Boston bombings, consistent updates on hospital locations, road closures and ways to find loved ones reduced confusion. Coordinated messaging prevents conflicting statements that erode trust.
Hospital Readiness
Receiving hospitals in Boston activated disaster plans, cleared emergency departments, called in surgical teams and opened operating rooms within minutes. Hospitals that exercise such plans regularly, and that know their surge capacity, can absorb sudden influxes without collapse.
Evidence Preservation
Mass casualty events caused by crimes add a law enforcement dimension. Medical teams must treat patients while preserving evidence where possible, and unified command allows police, fire, medical and public health leaders to balance these goals.
Conclusion
The Boston Marathon response shows that preparation, common structures and coordination save lives in mass casualty events. The incident command system, within the national incident management framework, gives responders a shared organization, and public health contributes through surge coordination, communication, reunification and mental health support. Training and exercises turn these structures into reflexes, building the kind of capability that defines real preparedness (Nelson et al., 2007).
References
Biddinger, P. D., Baggish, A., Harrington, L., d'Hemecourt, P., Hooley, J., Jones, J., Kue, R., Troyanos, C., & Dyer, K. S. (2013). Be prepared: The Boston Marathon and mass-casualty events. New England Journal of Medicine, 368(21), 1958-1960. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp1305480
Federal Emergency Management Agency. (2017). National incident management system (3rd ed.). U.S. Department of Homeland Security. https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/nims
Nelson, C., Lurie, N., Wasserman, J., & Zakowski, S. (2007). Conceptualizing and defining public health emergency preparedness. American Journal of Public Health, 97(Suppl. 1), S9-S11. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2007.114496
MPH 520 Module 3 instructions, in plain terms
Aspen's description of MPH 520 includes responding to and containing emergencies, and as the third module's prompt appears only in the classroom, this example examines how responders organize under the incident command system. Such assignments usually ask you to explain the system and its principles, apply it to a real incident, and describe public health's place in the structure. Check whether your instructor wants you to diagram the structure for a scenario. Name each section and what it does. Explain unified command. Use an after-action report or published account of a real response. Identify what went well, what failed and what a health department should change in its own plan.
How this MPH 520 Module 3 example is built
About 1,000 words fill seventeen headings, with a three-column table of incident command sections and public health examples. It explains the national framework and the incident command system, lists key principles and then describes the Boston bombings, the preparation that paid off and how patients were distributed. Public health's role, family reunification, responder mental health, a composite county plan and common failures follow, along with exercises, bystander bleeding control, public information, hospital readiness and evidence preservation. A margin note beside the framework section shows where the system fits nationally. The conclusion ties preparation, common structure and coordination to lives saved. Each lesson for the county plan is traced to a specific Boston finding.
Reading the MPH 520 Module 3 grading rubric
Incident command papers are commonly judged on accurate description of the system, correct use of terms, application to a real event, attention to public health's specific roles and lessons for planning. The national incident management document, a physicians' account of the Boston response and a preparedness definition article supply the evidence, listed in APA style. The sections table uses public health examples rather than generic ones. Principles are explained with reasons. The Boston analysis links outcomes to preparation. Sections on reunification and responder mental health show awareness of needs often left out of plans. Correct terms, such as operational period and incident action plan, show familiarity with the system. A clear link from the real event to local plan changes completes the analysis.
MPH 520 Module 3 help from the desk
A frequent problem is describing the incident command system as a chain of command without explaining functions, or treating it as a police and fire tool with no public health role. Another is praising a response without evidence. Use published accounts or after-action reports. Explain unified command clearly, since it confuses many students. Show where your health department would sit. Our tutors can review your structure diagram and confirm that each role is placed correctly. Close with one change you would make to a local plan after studying the event. Check that every term you use, such as operations or planning section, matches the national framework's definitions. Short descriptions of each role are better than long lists of duties.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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MPH 520 Module 3 questions, answered
What does MPH 520 Module 3 usually ask for?
Aspen's MPH 520 covers responding to and containing disasters, so a paper on incident command and a real response is a typical assignment. Confirm with your classroom prompt.
What are the sections of the incident command system?
Command, operations, planning, logistics, and finance and administration.
What is unified command?
An arrangement in which agencies with shared authority jointly set objectives for an incident.
Where can I find a free MPH 520 Module 3 sample paper?
The Boston Marathon incident command paper is published here, including a table of command sections with public health examples.
What is public health's role in the incident command system in MPH 520 Module 3?
Public health may serve in unified command and staff operations and planning roles for surveillance, surge coordination, communication, reunification and mental health support.