Emergency Planning & Crisis Handling eNews

Coping with crises!  June 2003
 
 

Please find below the latest copy of our newsletter.  The Docleaf team aim to keep you abreast of the latest issues relating to emergency planning and crisis management. 

 

  
 
SARS - Media hype or a real crisis?

Dr. David Perl, Chief Executive of Docleaf, gives his perspective on the SARS crisis, based on his experience as a medic and  now providing crisis management services.  He recently spent time in the Far East where the impact of SARS is still very much being felt in the travel and leisure industries.

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Trauma counselling controversy still rages - Summary

A recent article in the Sunday Times claimed that "a stiff upper lip" is more effective then counselling, in the wake of a traumatic incident.  We summarise the findings of this article and give a response from the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy.  

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Marriott Vale Hotel fire - A communications case study from the USA

If this had not been well handled by Paul Witt (a US based crisis communications specialist) and the hotel staff, there is little doubt that the hotel could have been out millions of dollars in additional lost business, run a high risk of lawsuits, and perhaps have gone out of business entirely.  Here, Paul describes how an effective communication strategy saved the day.

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SARS - Media hype or a real crisis?

Now officially described as the first epidemic of this millennium by the WHO, SARS continues to wreck havoc, not only on the individual unfortunate enough to be struck by the disease, but also on the economy at large and especially the travel and leisure industry.  But are things really as bad as the WHO and the media would have us believe? 

First things first – we need to put some perspective on the current situation.  Every day 3,000 children die from malaria and 5,500 from AIDS.  Since SARS was first identified late last year, hundreds of thousand of people will have died prematurely from the harmful side effects of smoking and obesity. 

With the Iraqi war now over, it could be argued that the media are now looking for other interesting news.  What better than a new illness that can kill at random – it is the stuff of science fiction books and Hollywood, however, I believe the reality to be very different.  If SARS were sweeping the world by storm, we would see an exponential increase in numbers of those infected and a far quicker global spread then we are seeing.  If the number of fatalities were to have doubled week on week (and a really virulent infection would kill at a much faster rate), in the past 20 weeks we would be dealing with more then 32,000 deaths –  100 times more than the actual number. 

We do know that the mortality is relatively low – around 4% (more recent research suggests this could be slightly higher but nowhere near as high as the 50-60% mortality with viruses such as Ebola). We also know that those who have poor immune systems are more susceptible as are those who are in very close contact with the infected – such as health care workers.   

So why all the fuss from the WHO?  Well, unlike influenza, it is thought that if enough effort is put into controlling the illness, SARS can be eradicated before it takes a hold in the population at large.  If it takes a firm grip in humans, it could produce new outbreaks of the infection for many years to come and with the ability to mutate into a more virulent form and could become an even bigger menace.  

Peter De Jong, Chief Executive of PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association) reported at a recent talk given by Dr. David Heymann, Executive Director of the World Health Organization, addressing the heads of state of ASEAN, he stated there was nothing about the SARS virus that should prevent people from travelling.  He was concerned that the WHO’s efforts to keep the public informed about the spread of the virus had had the unfortunate effect of discouraging travel to, from and through the Far East.  He also confirmed that the travel experience was NOT a contributor to the spread of SARS.  He emphasised that the public perception of this virus, which has caused a serious downturn in travel and tourism, was based upon an inaccurate interpretation of information that had been provided by the WHO to governments and the public.  So I ask, why has the WHO not communicated this message much more aggressively to the world at large.  

Therefore, I rest my case that SARS is more about media hype than the real crisis we are led to believe.  You are at more risk of being knocked down by a car on a trip to your doctor to be reassured that your fever is just the common cold and not SARS!

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Trauma counselling controversy still rages 

A recent article in the Sunday Times claimed that " a stiff upper lip" is more effective than counselling, in the wake of a traumatic incident (click here for text version).  The British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) launched an aggressive response (click here for their press release).  The 2 opposing views are summarised below:

The Times viewpoint

The BACP viewpoint

  • The Cochrane Organisation released research based on reviewing existing literature and came up with a number of findings.

  • Dwelling on the incident is harmful.

  • Counselling could make people more likely to suffer from the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

  • John McCarthy, the hostage held in Beirut for 4 years flourished without counselling after his ordeal.

  • Counselling can make people believe they have a problem, when they do not.

  • Of a study of 3,000 soldiers who witnessed atrocities in Bosnia, only 3% suffered psychological symptoms.

  • Qualifications for counsellors are vague - even Bernard Manning managed to be signed up to the BACP as a counsellor specialising in stress related to marriage and race relations.

  • One commentator observes "there is more data supporting the view that talking about how unhappy you are just makes matters worse"

  • A survivor of the World Trade Centre attack states "they (counsellors) just wanted to rehash everything and I didn't want to - I just wanted to forget about it and move on".

  • Trevor Hicks, who lost his 2 daughters at Hillsborough states "everyone handles grief in a different way and ham-fisted counselling can certainly make it worse - we were inundated with counsellors in the immediate aftermath and most of them had no idea what to do."

  • The Cochrane institute states they were misquoted.

  • Terry Wait (who was held hostage with John McCarthy) states both he and John received ongoing counselling from the dedicated military counselling unit at RAF Lyneham.

  • Only 3% of women get breast cancer, but no one suggest we ignore that, as not being of significance.  In addition, soldiers may be more resistant to developing PTSD due to training and background.

  • What was attempted after the World Trade Centre was "psychological debriefing" and not counselling.  Counselling is a specialised process undertaken at the wishes of the client who has had time to reflect on the underlying issues.

  • PTSD is a serious and difficult illness resulting in major mental health problems.  It affects 3% of soldiers and perhaps 20% of rape victims.

  • The BACP requires a minimum of 900 hours of training and practice before offering accreditation. Personal supervision, personal therapy, continuing professional development and professional indemnity insurance are all required as well.

  • Trevor Hicks uses the term "ham fisted counselling" - anything "ham-fisted" is not good news!

What ever your viewpoint, any form of emotional support (or psychological first aid as we like to call it) in the aftermath of a serious incident, needs  be provided by appropriately experienced and trained people.  The Docleaf support team fills just such a niche and in many cases represents a far more cost effective resource than the more traditonal "trauma counsellor" who use "psychological debriefing" .  For a FAQ on the Docleaf Support Team please click here.

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  Marriott Vale Hotel fire  - The good, the bad and the ugly

Many thanks to both Paul Witt, (president of Witt Communications - www.wittcommunications.com), for providing Jonathan Bernstein  (President, Bernstein Crisis Management  - www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com) with the facts and a lot of the copy that allowed Jonathan to write up this case history. If this had not been well handled by Paul and the hotel staff, there is little doubt that the hotel could have been out millions of dollars in additional lost business, run a high risk of lawsuits, and perhaps have gone out of business entirely.

In November 2000 -- a week before Thanksgiving just after the ski season started -- a fire that started in a chimney destroyed a floor of rooms at the Marriott in Vail, Colorado and shut down an entire wing. It closed down 116 of 349 rooms in the hotel for the entire ski season, and also closed its ballroom and other function rooms for a month or so.

The hotel had to act quickly in contacting guests booked into the hotel for the next six months, help find other accommodations, rescue their Thanksgiving week business, not lose too much of their group business and assure everyone that the hotel was safe. Throw in the fact that it came out during the investigation that chimney construction in the unit where the fire started was faulty and that the chimney sweep had told the hotel about it a year before, and we had a very interesting situation. Lastly, toss in that Vail had been the location of another fire two years previous, set by eco-terrorists - speculation was rampant in the first couple of days.

The Crisis Response

The fire occurred on November 18 and crisis management consultant Paul Witt of Witt Communications was contacted the next day. He quickly huddled with the hotel's top management and developed a two-page communications strategy, tactics, timeline and key messages.

Key messages for the local business community and media included:

  • We are grateful that no one was injured. All of the guests and staff were evacuated safely, and none of the fire-fighters were injured.
  • The safety systems in the hotels all worked as designed -- smoke alarms and sprinklers all operated as they were supposed to.
  • The hotel remains open and functioning.
  • We are accommodating the current guests, guests on the books, and guests calling to book future stays.
  • The hotel remains open and functioning.
  • We are accommodating current guests, guests on the books, and guests calling to book future bookings.
  • 116 rooms out of 348 were affected, leaving 232 rooms available for guests .
  • All facilities are open, with the exception of the Grand Ballroom.
  • The open facilities include the restaurant, the spa, Lobby Bar, Ski Shop, and other amenities.
  • The Ballroom suffered water and smoke and damage. Clean up is underway now. We anticipate that it will reopen on (date given).

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Key messages for staff included:

  • You have done outstanding jobs -- we are proud of the way this staff has handled this situation.
  • We don't know what started the fire, and there should be no speculation.
  • The ATF (Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) is here because they are an added resource for the Town of Vail fire department. There is no other reason at this time.
  • The building is being checked for structural safety.  No one will be asked to go into any area of the building until we are certain that it is safe.
  • Marriott's commitment to the staff is to keep you gainfully employed. It's too early to tell what impact, IF ANY, there will be on any employment situation.
  • As much as Marriott is committed to you, we ask you to be committed to the property. You are still our best ambassadors of goodwill and guest service.

Similar messages went to their national business partners, and tactics for delivering these messages were customized to each audience. For example, meetings were held with Vail Resorts Central Reservations, Vail Valley Tourism Convention Bureau and other key referral sources. There were local and national press releases, and faxes sent to tour operators, travel agents and wholesalers. All fireplace use was banned pending inspections and necessary repairs to all chimneys.

Outcome & Impact

Not everything went smoothly. In early December it was revealed that chimney maintenance might not have been done properly, possibly contributing to the fire. Follow-up communications addressed how the hotel was now responding to that information in a responsible manner, to include acceleration of its existing program to convert wood-burning fireplaces to gas. Although the original construction of the chimney was deemed non-compliant with code, no citations were issued (probably in part because the Town of Vail's building inspector had signed off on the construction).

Business was off because the 119 rooms were out commission for the winter. So the hotel had to walk some of its guests, but was able to accommodate the vast majority of them. They lost minimal business because of the fire - mainly a few large groups that they could no longer take care of. However, with the ballroom still operable, they could still host large functions. Also, the hotel took the opportunity to revamp the entire wing of the hotel and significantly upgrade the rooms as well as the exterior of the building, which allowed them to re-launch the hotel the following winter as not only rebuilt, but "new and improved."

And as it turns out, Vail Resorts, the ski resort operator, purchased the hotel and invested a lot more money into upgrading the exterior of the rest of the building to the rebuilt section's design, while improving the remaining rooms and public areas. End

result: everybody went home happy!

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