Red Cross Uses Wireless Technology to Help Save Lives

The Red Cross is always there in a crisis: helping Florida residents recover from tornadoes, getting emergency services to people displaced by fires, storms, and mass devastation from events like Hurricane Katrina. As Senior Vice President and CIO of Information Technology for the Red Cross (and former CIO for the Department of Homeland Security), Steven Cooper understands the importance of emergency communications. Read his perspective on the way wireless technology has evolved and how it helps the Red Cross reach people in need faster and more effectively.

BlackBerry Connection® (BC): What is the role of the Red Cross in disaster response situations?

Steven Cooper (SC): Think of the Red Cross as a bridge between the disaster that's occurred and getting people back to a safe and secure environment. The Red Cross offers mass care under the National Response Plan when there is any kind of natural disaster, including setting up emergency shelters. We've established shelters in the State of Florida for many decades because of the hurricanes. In heavy snowfalls, like the recent ones in Denver when there are power outages, we're also there to help.

Often we partner with other humanitarian organizations, such as the Salvation Army, to provide hot meals. We have case workers who assist people in damage assessment and, when necessary, emergency financial assistance. We provide nursing aid, mental health care and access to replacement, prescription drugs. During Hurricane Katrina, four million people were displaced and their access to medicine was cut off, so we helped get the prescription medicines they needed.

BC: Has wireless technology helped deliver these services any faster or more effectively?

SC: We used to need runners to drive between our bases of operations and shelters. Now, technology helps our staff, volunteers and partners communicate and it reduces our cycle time or speed to market. During a large scale disaster like Katrina, our shelters lost their communications capabilities and we used wireless and satellite to restore communications.

During the past five to 10 years, we've implemented the broad use of wireless technology among Red Cross staff and volunteers. We've used lessons drawn from the military and defense environment to deploy quick response wireless networks. The ability to get immediate, direct responses helps our people get status reports on what's needed, such as medication, hygiene kits or any special requirements.

We know for a fact that wireless technology, and a lot of what the Red Cross does, can save lives and lessen damage to property. That's what we care about.

BC: Can you give any examples of this technology at work in the field?

SC: We're using wireless technology to help our case workers do their reports on site. They can relay the casework for a family or individual back to a central location where it's maintained and integrated into various databases.

Increasingly, we're using GPS-enabled devices so we can track our assets on the ground. We need to know where our people are, particularly if they're in a disaster zone, because we don't want to place them in harm's way. We also GPS track the movement of materials - supplies that our clients need.

BC: Does it play a part in the Red Cross's other activities, such as mobile blood drives?

SC: We're beginning to expand the use of wireless technology to blood drives now that we can be sure this information is encrypted, both at the data level and during transmission. When we send a mobile unit out to a location to conduct a blood drive, we capture donor information right there and transmit it to a central database. For example, people who have been in malaria-infected countries must not donate for a certain period of time. With wireless technology, we can validate on-the-spot whether a donor is eligible to give blood by checking their information against a national list.

BC: Are you using it to manage day-to-day operations for the Red Cross?

SC: As wireless technology advances with security and stability, and costs have come down, we've seen its value in normal operational activities. About 15,000 of our 35,000 employees have some kind of wireless capability. They are mainly using email, scheduling and contact information. A small percentage of our volunteers are also equipped with wireless devices.

In some of our small, satellite facilities and warehouses, wireless technology is used when people swipe their badges to get into our buildings.

BC: Is wireless technology cost-effective when compared to wired approaches?

SC: Wireless technologies are becoming cost competitive with wired technologies. As a CIO, I have to manage risk for not just the American Red Cross, but for the clients we serve. When I combine the safety and security of wireless devices, with the fact that the cost to deploy them is affordable, I see continuous improvement. Wireless technology providers will continue to enhance their capabilities; I can now make very considered decisions about where and when I'm going to deploy wireless technologies as a replacement for wired technologies.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross helps people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies. Last year, almost a million volunteers and 35,000 employees helped victims of almost 75,000 disasters; taught lifesaving skills to millions; and helped U.S. service members separated from their families stay connected. Almost 4 million people gave blood through the Red Cross, the largest supplier of blood and blood products in the United States. The American Red Cross is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. An average of 91 cents of every dollar the Red Cross spends is invested in humanitarian services and programs. The Red Cross is not a government agency; it relies on donations of time, money, and blood to do its work.

For more information about disaster response, local blood drives and how you can help, visit www.redcross.org.