What is the purpose of the after-action report following disaster drills?

• A. Identify gaps, drive corrective actions, and share findings with leadership.
• B. Assign blame to staff.
• C. Only for regulatory compliance.
• D. Keep findings confidential and not shared.

Answer: (A)

After-action reports are the mechanism that turns drill experiences into real improvements. They document what happened, identify gaps in plans, procedures, and training, and lay out concrete corrective actions with owners and deadlines. Sharing these findings with leadership ensures visibility, accountability, and the resources needed to fix issues, prioritize changes, and track progress. The goal is continuous improvement of preparedness, not assigning blame or merely ticking a regulatory box. Keeping results private or using them to blame staff would impede learning and progress.