212628 A Cross-sectional Study of Maryland's Hospitals Communication Capabilities during Public Health Emergencies

Monday, November 9, 2009

Sadia Aslam, MPH , Office of Preparedness and Response, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Baltimore, MD
Heather N. Brown, MPH , Office of Preparedness and Response, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Baltimore, MD
Albert Romanosky, MD, PhD , Office of Preparedness and Response, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Baltimore, MD
Isaac Ajit, MBBS, MPH , Office of Preparedness and Response, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Baltimore, MD
Sherry Adams, RN, CPM , Office of Preparedness and Response, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Baltimore, MD
Interoperable communications from the state to hospitals as well as inter-jurisdictional communication with partners is critical to an emergency response. The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH), Office of Preparedness and Response (OP&R) conducted a cross sectional study to determine the hospitals communication capabilities in Maryland.

OP&R developed a tool to collect communication capabilities of acute care hospitals. The survey was posted on OP&R's secure website where hospitals logged in and completed the survey. The tool collected data on types of communication systems used by hospitals.

Thirty nine (85%) of 46 total acute care hospitals completed the survey. Fourteen hospitals (36%) reported having satellite phones. Fifty one percent of the hospitals reported having 800MHz radios and 21% reported having 700MHz radios. Fifty four percent of hospitals reported having WebEOC as one of their redundant communication systems. Ninety seven percent of hospitals reported the use of email and two hospitals reported the use of Twitter as forms of communication systems in their hospital. About 19 (49%) hospitals reported the use of voice over IP and 59% reported using text messaging.

Communication is an important element during public health emergencies. This study shows how individual hospitals in Maryland have several forms of redundant communication. If one system does not work, then they are able to utilize another to sustain communication. However, it is important for all the hospitals to have similar communication systems so they are able to sustain interoperable communications during public health events.

Learning Objectives:
Describe the importance of commuications during a public health emergency. Describe the communcation capabilities of Maryland Hospitals.

Keywords: Planning, Disasters

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been assisting with various activities for Hospital Preparedness Program for over a year, as well as other emergency preparedness related activities. I also help analyze data for preparedness assessments and write up reports.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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