Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
In addition, someone from the Public Health agency, probably the PHO, should
be in contact with officials regarding the SNS. Very rarely will a locality have suf-
ficient supplies of medicines and such needed in the case of Avian Influenza, or any
significant epidemiological event, to handle the response, treatment, and possible
vaccines on its own. The SNS was designed to be able to send needed supplies of
medicines to localities within 12 hours of request. Beyond simply providing medi-
cines, the SNS also houses supplies of antidotes, antitoxins, and medical/surgical
items. It is specifically designed to bring necessary resources to localities that in
most cases will not be expected to stock all such things—even though the public
will need them in the case of specific types and degrees of disasters. Initial contact
with SNS officials should be made within the first 6-12 hours after an incident has
occurred or is discovered, to assure the most rapid delivery of supplies and medi-
cines to those in your community that will need them.
As part of the Public Health response, there are also other concerns to look at
as the time beyond an event changes from hours to days. Is there an environmental
impact that the disaster has caused, and if so, what federal and state officials and
agencies will need to be called in to assist in assessment, cleanup, and recovery? It
is at this point in the recovery stage after an incident that the Public Health agency
can also work in tandem with transportation, utility, and government agencies to
assess other needs. Is a mass evacuation center needed and if so, how will affected
people be transported to that facility? Have transportation routes been affected
such that calling for a mass evacuation may cause more chaos and distress than that
of the incident? Are there other federal agencies that have specialized teams with
which the Public Health agency needs to be in contact?
Here is another job aid that features things for the PHO to think about in the
aftermath of an incident, at varying time intervals. Although certain responsibili-
ties are listed for certain time periods, keep in mind that as part of the response,
those tasks that need to be taken care of early in a response will need to be contin-
ued as the response moves along, even as new responsibilities are added. This job
aid should be used as part of training the entire Public Health agency staff, and
shared with any volunteer organizations or other agencies that will be assisting as
part of the Public Health response effort (Figure 6.3).
Who Is Involved?
As mentioned previously, the success of the Public Health agency's response to
a disaster/incident will depend greatly on the cooperation of many people. And
this involves more than just the other staff that make up the agency and work
for the lead PHO. This part of the chapter will look at particular people that the
PHO should look to for assistance and help in coordination, and note how these
lines of communication should be opened well before any incident takes place,
but rather during the Preparedness phase of the Emergency Management cycle.
Trying to establish these contacts during the immediate aftermath of an incident
