Emergency Preparedness

Effective communication in times of man-made or natural disasters is key to effective emergency preparedness, response, and management. However, people with disabilities, especially those with significant communication disabilities, are at particular risk because they may not have the vocabulary needed to effectively communicate. Similarly, emergency first responders may not know how to communicate with people with complex communication needs.

The Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC) and the United States Association for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (USAAC) have sponsored the development and posting of needed information both for people with complex communication needs and for first responders. You can view this important information by going to http://aac-rerc.psu.edu/index-46053.php.html

In addition, on this website you will find needed vocabulary for communicating in times of emergency. As with other vocabulary sets on this website, vocabulary for communicating in times of emergency was developed based on the structured input of people who use AAC and professionals who work as first responders in times of emergencies.

Following you will find access to:

Emergency Communication - Full Vocabulary Set