Public Health Preparedness

icon_phpreparedness100 NACCHO’s preparedness work focuses on activities related to both practice and policy. NACCHO creates new tools and improves existing ones to help local health departments enhance their readiness to respond to public health emergencies and other disasters. NACCHO also serves as a conduit through which local input can reach and effect positive change on national initiatives.

In the Spotlight

National Preparedness Month—Use NACCHO's Template and Send a Public Message to Your Local Media Outlets

September is National Preparedness Month. It serves as an opportunity to honor, and to bolster, the ability of individuals and the larger community to rebound from traumatic, tragic, and unpredictable events. This past August marked the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, and we will soon reach the ninth year since the 9/11 attacks—deadly and destructive disasters in American history that continue to stir our national grief and haunt our individual memories. Given that federal resources are limited during major emergencies, our communities may be on their own for at least 48 hours before outside help arrives.

NACCHO has created a "Letter to the Editor" template that you can use to send a public message for you to customize and send to your local media outlets prior to Sept. 11, when the media will be most receptive to such messages. You may also wish to post the message on your website. Please feel free to use and adapt it as you see fit. More »

Story from the Field

MRC Evaluation Toolkit: An Overview

Despite substantial investments in public health preparedness, validated measures to ensure accountability and to enable systems improvement and the advancement of knowledge are lacking. To help fill this gap, the Office of the Civilian Volunteer Medical Reserve Corps (OCVMRC) partnered with the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), the Harvard School of Public Health, and Georgetown University to develop an MRC Evaluation Toolkit that MRC units can use to assess the effectiveness of engaging volunteers in public health activities—specifically, volunteers’ participation in flu clinics.

"Story from the Field" is a regular feature in NACCHO's bi-monthly e-newsletter, "Preparedness Brief." Join the "Preparedness Brief" mailing list today!

Related Resources

»	Rural Health Network Development Planning Grant Program
	The Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) announces the Rural Health Network Development Planning Grant Program (Network Planning) program. The purpose of this grant is to expand access to, coordinate, and improve the quality of essential healthcare services and to also enhance the delivery of healthcare in rural areas. The grant was highlighted at an Institute of Medicine "Rural Mass Casualty Response—Workshop in Washington, DC," which was held to provide participants an opportunity to examine the current capabilities and future opportunities to improve integrated mass casualty response in rural settings. The grant is a tool to help rural entities build a stronger response mechanism and support planning activities, and can be used for emergency planning activities. For further information on the grant, please visit the HRSA grant website at http://tinyurl.com/HRSAruralgrant.

»	Preparedness Brief E-Newsletter
	Preparedness Brief, NACCHO's bimonthly public health preparedness e-newsletter, features announcements, events, resources and "Stories from the Field" relevant to today's public health preparedness professional. Sign up to receive the Preparedness Brief today!

»	The Role of Nongovernmental Organizations in Long-Term Human Recovery after Disaster: Reflections from Louisiana Four Years after Hurricane Katrina
	The RAND Gulf States Policy Institute and RAND Health partnered with the Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations, the Louisiana Family Recovery Corps, and the Louisiana Association of United Ways to convene NGO leaders and give them an opportunity to share their lessons learned and ongoing challenges four years after Hurricane Katrina. More »

»	Federal Public Health Preparedness Resources
	Find links to relevant public health preparedness information from federal sources including the Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Department of Homeland Security. More »