This toolkit, developed for hospital food services directors and/or hospital dietitians, helps hospitals plan for and document emergency food supplies according to regulatory requirements. Hospital emergency planners should also review and become familiar with these documents for joint planning purposes.
Shared by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), this tool addresses the special medical needs of children, and emphasizes how health care facilities must be prepared for both pediatric and adult victims of bio-terrorism attacks, including those resulting from dispersal of airborne or food borne agents.
Hospitals should consider memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with organizations that can supplement their resources and services during emergencies and disasters. MOUs are established between hospitals, other health care providers, and/or emergency response agencies to collaborate, communicate, respond, and support one another during a disaster or other public health emergency. Understandings regarding the incident command structure, patient and resource management, processes and policies in place for requesting and sharing of staff, equipment and consumable resources, as well as payment, are generally addressed in a local mutual aid MOU.
What’s happening: On Oct. 3, CHA informed members of an IV fluid shortage due to the temporary closure of Baxter International’s North Carolina plant, which supplies 60% of the country’s IV solutions. The facility was damaged by flooding from Hurricane Helene.
What else to know: The update from CHA includes guidance for hospitals to mitigate the impact of the IV shortage.
Public health and health care preparedness and response are key facilitators in managing wildfires and extreme heat events. Health systems see medical surge, increased patient comorbidities, and increased resource needs when communities are affected by climate extremes. This presentation will provide an overview of an ongoing project between the University of California’s Center for Climate, Health and Equity, and the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) to strengthen and streamline the city’s emergency response plans and protocols for climate-related events.
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Start thinking about the 2023 Disaster Planning Conference. Save this date. Or if you already know you are going to attend – Excellent! Register now to attend in person or virtual. We are happy to have you.
This post has been archived and contains information that may be out of date.
This post has been archived and contains information that may be out of date.
REMEMBER, RECHARGE, and RECONNECT
“Learn from the past, prepare for the future, live in the present.”
-Thomas Monson
What health care workers experienced over the last two years will be talked about for generations to come. We suffered professional and personal losses, pushed ourselves beyond our limits, and learned more than we ever expected. Fortunately, one of our greatest strengths is resiliency. Through it all, we strengthened ties with our colleagues, communities, and families.
COVID-19 brought about unforeseen challenges and solutions, forever changing the face of emergency readiness. With gritty determination and endless perseverance, you demonstrated day in and day out how valuable you are to keeping our communities safe and healthy.
“Hospitals with a cybersecurity plan in place prior to an attack have a better chance at minimizing damage.” Mary Massey, CHA Vice President of Emergency Management The Internet represents one of the biggest tools hospitals utilize to function successfully. It is also one of the largest vulnerabilities. Safeguarding devices, networks, and data from cyberattacks is […]