Rashid Alteneiji, H; Ahmed, V and Saboor, S (2021) A qualitative approach to investigate emergency preparedness state for the built environment in the UAE. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 28(7), pp. 2005-2022. ISSN 0969-9988
Abstract
Purpose: Emergency preparedness (EP) is one of the crucial phases of the disaster management cycle for the built environment. The body of knowledge, therefore, reports on different preparedness standards adopted by developed countries such as the United Kingdom (UK), the United States of America (USA), Canada, Japan and Australia. Other countries, however, such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (in the absence of its preparedness framework), have long adapted the UK preparedness standards. This has called for this study to investigate the state of EP practices in the UAE to identify the limitations and challenges it has been facing during its preparedness phase when adopting the UK preparedness standards. Design/methodology/approach: Qualitative methods of data collection and documentation with the content analysis were adopted to identify the barriers faced by the preparedness phase of emergency management (EM) in the UAE. A Pilot study was therefore conducted to validate eight key elements of the EP phase identified from the literature. The state of EP phase and the extent to which the eight key elements of EP elements were practiced and the barriers in their implementation in the UAE were explored through interviews at federal (National Crisis and Emergency Management Authority) and local levels (local team of crisis and emergency management). Findings: The study identified eight key elements of the EP phase and the associated barriers related to their implementation in the UAE. The barriers were ranked based on their severity by interviewing experts at both federal and local levels. Practical implications: This paper addresses the need to investigate the state of the EP phase, its key elements and the barriers faced during its implementation in the UAE. Originality/value: Due to the absence of any EP frameworks or systems in the UAE, this paper aims to validate the EP elements identified by adopting a qualitative approach.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | built environment; disaster management; emergency management; emergency preparedness; preparedness phase; United Arab Emirates |
| Index terms: | United States of America, Canada, Australia, qualitative approach, built environment, implementation, disaster management, emergency preparedness, interview, documentation, Japan, qualitative method, content analysis, United Kingdom, emergency management, developed country, methodology, body of knowledge, United Arab Emirates |
| Subjects: | infrastructure and transport systems, Geography, development economics, professional development, financial risk, safety engineering, research methods, contractual arrangements, data analysis and analytics, knowledge management, data collection methods, research design and methodology |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Geographical Context, Information Management, Cost Management, Health and Safety, Procurement, International Construction, Urban Studies |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here