DMAT Status Descriptions

Phase 1	Standby	Ready to deploy in under 12 hours.
Phase 2	Standby (On-Call)	Ready to deploy in under 8 hours, upon completion of preparatory tasks. DMATs are usually on-call for a month at a time, 3-4 months per year. Team actions: Notify team members via web site and e-mail, possibly by phone tree. Member actions: Watch the news to monitor the incident.
Phase 2	Advisory	Possible deployment. Ready to deploy in under 12 hours. An incident has occurred that may cause team deployment. Team can place itself on advisory or NDMS can do it. Team actions: Prepare monthly availability roster; ensure cache is ready to load. Member actions: Inform team of your availability schedule; keep personal gear and uniform packed; prepare your employer and family for the possibility of deployment; watch the news for incidents which might cause a deployment.
Phase 3	Alert	Prepare for deployment. Ready to deploy in under 4 hours, upon completion of preparatory tasks. DMATs are typically placed on alert in response to a specific incident. Team actions: Notify team members via web site, e-mail, and phone tree. Some team members are activated to prepare a mission roster, and to prepare and load the cache. Member actions: Inform team of your availability schedule; keep personal gear and uniform packed and with you at all times; inform your family and employer that a deployment may be pending; monitor the news for information related to the incident.
Phase 4	Activation	Deploying to an incident, typically for 10-14 days. Team must be en route in under 12 hours if previous status was Standby or Advisory, 8 hours if previous status was On-call, and 4 hours if previous status was Alert (and preparations were completed for the previous status). Team actions: Notify team members via web site, e-mail, and phone tree; prepare mission roster; prepare and load the cache; assemble the team at the point of departure ; activate agreements for transportation, pharmaceuticals; conduct mobilization activities. Member actions: Inform team of your availability; inform your family and employer that you may be deploying; report to the point of departure with your uniform and personal gear. Final roster will be determined at that time. Note that you might report for duty but not be assigned to the mission.
Phase 5	Stand-Down	Re-inventory equipment, order new supplies, team members clean and repack personal gear, usually 2 weeks. Team actions: Restock and repack team equipment (typically 2 weeks); organize CISD. Member actions: Restock and repack personal gear; attend CISD; help repack team equipment.