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Public health systems integration in support of emergency preparedness

Noam H. Arzt, PhD, HLN Consulting, LLC, 7072 Santa Fe Canyon Place, San Diego, CA 92129, 858-538-2220, arzt@hln.com and Susan M. Salkowitz, MGA, Salkowitz Associates, LLC, Two Independence Place, 233 S. 6th Street, #1601, Philadelphia, PA 19106.

To support emergency preparedness, many jurisdictions are involved in the deployment of multiple public health information systems that are part of the Public Health Information Network (PHIN). Integration of these systems should be a high priority for health departments seeking to leverage both data and technology to improve the speed, accuracy and comprehensiveness of their surveillance and immunization tracking. The authors examined five major public health system types and developed a conceptual model for their integration. These systems included: * An immunization registry * Smallpox Pre-event System * National Electronic Disease Surveillance System (NEDSS) * Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) Data Management System * Data warehouse. Examples of integration efforts from around the country will also be discussed. The conceptual roadmap offered in this presentation will help projects assess the benefits and possibilities for system integration. These systems represent rich sources of information and substantial investment that should be leveraged wherever possible. A more thorough analysis needs to be done for any given jurisdiction, with the benefit of more specific information about the contents, uses, and processes supported there, in order to identify how exchange of information among them can best be accomplished.

Learning Objectives:

Keywords: Bioterrorism, Health Information Systems

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Homeland Security

The 132nd Annual Meeting (November 6-10, 2004) of APHA