Epidemic preparedness tools and resources

Discover our helpful tools and resources about epidemic and pandemic preparedness—on topics ranging from disease control to community engagement and accountability.

Community health and epidemic control

Red Cross volunteers from the Democratic Republic of the Congo are trained in safe and dignified burials to support the response to a local ebola outbreak

Community-based Health and First Aid: guides and manuals

Our eCBHFA website contains teaching guides and tools, evidence and operational tools on everything to do with community health and first aid.

A Red Cross volunteer assists a member of a safe and dignified burial team to put on their personal protective equipment as part of the response to ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Epidemic Control for Volunteers and Response Managers

Our Epidemic Control Toolkit provides information for volunteers and managers to prevent and control the spread of epidemics at the community-level, and guidance on appropriate referral and basic care for the sick.

A group of young boys in Fiji hold up posters as they take part in a training session in their village on disaster preparedness, including how to prepare and respond to floods, cyclones, earthquakes and tsunamis

Public Awareness and Public Education for Disaster Risk Reduction: Key messages

The IFRC and Save the Children have worked together to produce concise and practical key messages to support disaster prevention within communities. Messages cover a wide range of hazards including epidemics and pandemics.

Yemen Red Crescent volunteers speak and provide informational leaflets to a woman living in a slum area of Aden about how to stay safe from cholera as part of an anti-cholera campaign in 2017.

Global Task Force on Cholera Control

The Global Task Force on Cholera Control (GTFCC) is a partnership of more than 50 institutions working to end cholera. The IFRC hosts its Country Support Platform which will help countries to develop and put in place effective National Cholera Plans.

 

Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA)

Guinea Red Cross volunteers speak to members of their community about how to prevent and recognise symptoms of Ebola

Community Engagement Hub

The Community Engagement Hub, hosted by the British Red Cross, offers practical resources and advice on how we can ensure communities are always at the heart of what we do.

A man listens to a Red Cross broadcast on a cranking radio donated by the Sierra Leone Red Cross Society.

Guide to Community Engagement and Accountability

The IFRC's guide on how to improve communication, engagement and accountability in all programmes and operations.

Indonesian Red Cross volunteers carry out community engagement work with children on safe handwashing in Papua New Guinea as part of their response to COVID-19

CEA Toolkit

Practical tools for National Societies and humanitarian organizations to assess, design, implement, monitor and evaluate community engagement and accountability activities.

A local journalist in Panemeth, South Sudan interviews a mother about receiving seeds and farming tools at a Red Cross distribution point

Guide for the media on communicating in public health emergencies

In a health crisis, the media has the power to save lives. Produced by our partner, BBC Media Action, this manual offers tips for media practitioners on how to support audiences during health emergencies.

A volunteer from the Indonesian Red Cross runs community engagement activities in Bali in July 2020 to help people understand how to properly wash their hands and reduce their risk during the COVID-19 pandemic

Collective Service for Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE)

A joint initiative by the IFRC, World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN). It helps partners in the public health, humanitarian and development sectors to increase and improve their RCCE activities.

Community-Based Surveillance (CBS)

The Malagasy Red Cross conducts community-based surveillance work in 2017 to detect and prevent further spread of a plague outbreak

CBS Knowledge Platform

A one-stop-shop for information and resources on Community-Based Surveillance, supported by the Norwegian Red Cross.

A man talks to a family about recent occurrences in their village in the Kambia district of Sierra Leone as part of the Red Cross Community Events Based Surveillance (CEBS) program

CBS guiding principles

Based on countless years of field experience, these guiding principles are designed to help National Societies and partner organizations to support communities to play an essential role in their own health security.

A health delegate from the Japanese Red Cross speaks to a woman living in Cox's Bazar refugee camp Bangladesh

CBS assessment tool

A practical tool to guide National Societies and partners in  how to conduct assessments of health threats within communities.

A Uganda Red Cross volunteer uses his smartphone to access resources about community epidemic and pandemic preparedness to help his work in his local community

CBS protocol template

Guidance, design considerations and instructions on how to design an effective community-based surveillance system.

Private sector preparedness

A local business owner in Turkana county, Kenya stands in front of his shop. His business suffered due to drought in the area in 2017 and he received cash assistance from the Kenyan Red Cross to help support his livelihood.

Business Preparedness Initiative Toolkit

This toolkit helps National Societies to implement or improve their outreach to small and medium-size businesses on how they can be better prepared for a variety of hazards and risks.

A graphic for the IFRC Atlas app for small and medium sized businesses featuring the 'resilience bear'

Atlas Ready for Business Mobile App

The Atlas app, developed by the IFRC's Global Disaster Preparedness Center, is an interactive and accessible tool designed to help small businesses identify risks and improve their operational readiness.

Data readiness

A Philippine Red Cross community health volunteer in Tacloban is one of the first trainees to use a mobile phone for community health data entry following Typhoon Haiyan in 2014.

Data Readiness Toolkit

Find out how best to gather and manage high-quality, timely information during humanitarian operations.

A Portuguese Red Cross volunteer uses an iPad to manage data about COVID-19 testing in the community

Data Playbook

The Data Playbook provides resources for National Societies to develop their literacy around data, including responsible data use and data protection.

Related links