Emergency simulation training builds a culture of preparedness and risk reduction in the Philippines

The Philippines faces a wide range of health emergencies each year, from disease outbreaks to climate-driven disasters that disrupt services and strain local systems. This means that emergency preparedness must remain a continuous effort woven into everyday operations beyond singular efforts activated only during crises. But an effective approach to preparedness requires a setting that reveals how systems behave once they are actually used. 

This kind of insight emerges most clearly during simulation exercises, where responders can move through scenarios that stress-test their contingency plans and mirror the uncertainty of an actual emergency while still in a safe environment. Aligned with the World Health Organization's (WHO’s) International Health Regulations Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, these exercises not only give countries a grounded view of how mechanisms for emergency preparedness function once they are put under pressure but help in building a culture of preparedness across communities. 

In October 2025, the Philippines Department of Health (DOH) participated in a first-of-its-kind Simulation Exercise Management Course for Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Operations. This landmark event aimed to strengthen the capabilities of diverse responders to design, deliver, and evaluate health emergency simulation exercises. 

Participants discuss their proposed scenarios and objectives of their identified simulation exercise type and scenario, highlighting how the aims of the activities would affect the activity design. © WHO / Esguerra

The Course placed a spotlight on the country’s growing commitment to preparedness. Responders from across key agencies, including the DOH’s Health Emergency Management Bureau, the Bureau of Quarantine and one of the Philippines’ Emergency Medical Teams, used the course as a space to understand how their roles intersect and how their coordination shapes the outcome of a response. 

One of the participants, Dr Merrill Bayubay, a Medical Officer from the Cagayan Valley Medical Center, said she would “apply learnings by enhancing coordination and communication within our team, conducting regular simulation exercises, and updating our preparedness and response plans to ensure readiness for real emergencies.” 

Throughout the training, responders examined how a simulation exercise is built and carried out, and how each step reflects what they encounter during actual emergencies. This means that lessons drawn from the exercise can now help in refining their systems and positioning them for emergencies of increasing frequency and severity.

Participants discuss how designing a monitoring and evaluation framework can inform simulation exercise design and delivery to meet the exercise objectives. © WHO / Esguerra

The sessions also gave teams a clearer sense of how their coordination and decision-making shape the strength of a response and where adjustments are needed to stay prepared.

Dr Bernadett Velasco of the Health Emergency Management Bureau said the training emphasized the value of thinking about preparedness as a system. “When we build a culture of preparedness, each exercise becomes a way to see how the system responds and how we can keep improving before the next emergency,” she said. 

“Simulation exercises offer a safe but realistic space to see how systems behave when they are under strain,” said Acting WHO Representative to the Philippines, Dr Eunyoung Ko. “Each exercise strengthens coordination, sharpens decision-making, and helps responders refine the structures that protect communities during emergencies.”