Pandemic Preparedness and Response

PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE

FACT SHEET

Epidemic: An epidemic occurs when the number of people with an illness is higher than the number of people usually affected by the same illness or health-related event.

Pandemic: An epidemic occurring over a large geographical area that crosses international boundaries and affects a large number of people.

Infectious Disease: any disease that can be spread to different individuals; can be communicable or non communicable (CDC).

 Communicable = a disease that can be spread directly between a source (i.e. human, animal) and another individual

 Example: influenza

 Non-Communicable = a disease that cannot be spread directly between a source and another individual

 Example: food poisoning

Public Health Emergency: a situation that may overwhelm the community’s resources, hindering its ability to protect the public’s health through health care systems. This could be due to the disease’s ability to spread quickly, to affect a large number of people, and/or its ability to affect the population in an unusual way.

 Example: pandemic influenza

Emergency Preparedness and Response: the ability of the public health and healthcare systems, the community, and community members to protect against, quickly respond to, and recover from health emergencies that may overwhelm the community’s usual ability to protect the public’s health.

1 | P a g e Values of Emergency Planning and Response

1. Harm reduction, benefit promotion

2. Equal liberty, human rights

3. Distributive justice

4. Public accountability and transparency

 Involving, educating, and supporting citizens; transparent decision making; monitored use of governmental power; evaluation of plan effectiveness during implementation and after the emergency has subsided

5. Community strength and resiliency

6. Public health professionalism

7. Civic and personal responsibility

[NAME OF COMMUITY] Emergency Response Plan

 [ADD BULLETS FROM POWERPOINT HERE. INCLUDE ANY OTHER ADDITIONAL PERTINENT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROGRAM.]

2 | P a g e Implications of an Emergency Response Situation

 Some interventions may affect personal freedoms.

 Isolating infected or ill citizens  Closing or restricting access to public venues  Quarantining citizens believed to be exposed  Modifying office and work-scheduling practices  Closing schools, canceling public events  Limiting travel

 These are necessary to limit the spread of disease and protect the citizens’ health. Decision making will be carefully analyzed. The public will be informed of limitations to personal freedoms prior to implementation, and local decision makers will be prepared to explain their decisions. Citizens will be able to voice their concerns, and systems will be in place for restrictions to be re-considered and for alternatives to be discussed.

Resource Distribution is one of the major issues in an emergency situation.

 Resources are always limited. Rationing is a real issue.

 Examples: vaccines, medication, ventilators, equipment, personnel

 Eligibility criteria will NOT include race, ethnicity, religious belief, gender, sexual orientation, intelligence, income or ability to pay, what a person “deserves”, OR first come first served.

 There may be a situation where not everyone will be able to receive the care they believe they need.

 It is essential that healthcare workers and those responsible for lifesaving services during the pandemic have priority in a care situation.

 Those ineligible for care will have community support mechanisms available- they will NOT merely be stranded.

3 | P a g e Your Civic Rights

1. To be provided with truthful, complete, and timely information regarding emergency response.

2. To participate in emergency planning in an effort to give informed participatory consent to decisions and safety that will affect your safety, health, and well-being during an emergency situation.

Your Civic Responsibilities

1. Get an emergency supply kit together.

 Food and water, kitchen accessories

 Items for infants, seniors, disabled persons, and pets

 Flashlights, battery-powered radio or television, batteries

 First aid kit, sewing kit, whistle, emergency preparedness manual, an area map, matches, sanitation and hygiene items

 Change of clothing and footwear for each person, an extra set of keys and IDs, copies of medical prescriptions

 Blankets, sleeping bag, a small tent, compass, shovel

 Pencil, paper, cash, coins, copies of credit cards

2. Develop a family disaster plan, complete the CDC checklist from the website below (click “Develop a Family Disaster Plan”), and practice your plan.

3. Stay informed, lean how to shelter in place, understand your community emergency response plan, and maintain a health state of mind.

For detailed information on how to fulfill these responsibilities,

visit the CDC’s website for citizen emergency response preparedness:

http://emergency.cdc.gov/preparedness

4 | P a g e