142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

Home Events & Meetings Annual Meeting Schedule & Program

Online Program

Annual Meeting Recordings are now available for purchase

307740
Role of interlocal collaboration in public health emergency preparedness

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Monday, November 17, 2014

Nicole Errett, PhD, MSPH, CPH, CEM , Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
Shannon Frattaroli, PhD, MPH , Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
Beth Resnick, MPH , Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
Daniel J. Barnett, MD, MPH , Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
Lainie Rutkow, JD, PhD, MPH , Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
Background: While the mantra “every disaster is local” continues to guide public health preparedness efforts, local public health agencies (LPHA) may lack sufficient resources to handle disasters independently. Moreover, public health disasters do not recognize government-imposed geographic boundaries. In response to these challenges, FEMA has administered the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) grant program since 2003, requiring regional governance and collaboration to promote public health and safety.  Despite significant investments, there is little evidence surrounding the use of regional collaboration as a preparedness strategy. This presentation will convey empirical findings about key stakeholders’ perceptions of the role of regional collaboration in achieving national preparedness, the associated impact of the UASI grant, and implications for public health infrastructure and practice.

Methods: Key informant interviews were conducted. A combination of purposive and snowball sampling techniques was used to recruit key informants until data saturation was reached. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, coded, and analyzed using the framework approach.

Findings: Perceived benefits of regional collaboration in preparedness include increasing investment efficiency in regional capability enhancement; developing greater intra-disciplinary and interdisciplinary relationships within and across jurisdictions; and enabling mutual aid provision with regional assets. The UASI grant was perceived to have impacted this relationship by requiring collaboration and funding capability assessments and gap closures.  LPHAs can consider incorporating preparedness into existing shared-service relationships, and/or creating new regionalization preparedness-focused efforts, such as regional healthcare coalitions.

Conclusions: Interlocal collaboration can be an effective public health emergency preparedness strategy by allowing for regional capability enhancement and reducing redundancies.

Learning Areas:

Program planning
Public health administration or related administration
Public health or related organizational policy, standards, or other guidelines
Public health or related public policy

Learning Objectives:
Discuss the role of interlocal collaboration in achieving efficient and effective public health emergency preparedness Analyze the impact of federal homeland security/emergency management funds on the relationship of interlocal collaboration and preparedness Describe the role of public health practitioners and infrastructure in coordinating interlocal preparedness activities

Keyword(s): Emergency Preparedness, Public Health Policy

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: This research is part of my doctoral dissertation work in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. I worked in the fields of emergency preparedness as a practitioner for over five years. I am Certified in Public Health and a Certified Emergency Manager. My scientific interests include preparedness and emergency response. I am trained and experienced in qualitative and quantitative methods.
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.

Back to: 3304.0: Natural disasters