From theory to practice: Engaging and planning for racially and ethnically diverse communities in emergency preparedness

Time and time again, racial/ethnic minorities are disproportionately affected by public health emergencies. While Hurricane Katrina prompted attention to this issue, pervasive disparities in mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery remain. This was evident, yet again, following the 2009 H1N1 Pandemic as racial/ethnic minorities were more likely to contract the disease and be hospitalized. Since 2007, we have received continuing support from USDHHS Office of Minority Health to develop a set of consensus-based priorities and actions for engaging and incorporating racial/ethnic minorities in emergency preparedness. To this end, we convened a national panel of experts representing public/private federal, state, local and community-based organizations to develop a consensus statement, guiding principles and actionable strategies. Combined with national and peer-review literature and reports, this work is culminating in a first-of-a-kind broadly applicable toolkit (scheduled for release in Summer 2010) intended to complement existing guidance in the field on preparedness planning for vulnerable populations, but adding specific strategies grounded in the socioeconomic and cultural realities of racial/ethnic communities. This presentation will introduce this unique toolkit intended for public health and emergency management organizations and offer practical actions for engaging minority communities in establishing partnerships and trust, drills and exercises, personal education programs, community needs assessments, tailoring risk communication, program evaluation and other preparedness priorities. We will discuss issues commonly faced by planning organizations, such as limited resources, funds and staffing, roles/responsibilities, and interagency collaboration. Finally, we will highlight programs that have shown promise in planning for and advancing equity in preparedness for racial/ethnic minorities.