North Carolina Provides Valuable Resources to PIO's

Public Information Officers from all agencies face a daunting challenge in the Fall. The nation seemed poised for a two-stage mass vaccination program to address concerns about the flu. The first will target the so called “seasonal flu” and is routinely administered to at-risk populations each Autumn.

A second vaccine, likely administered in public schools, will seek to protect from the H1N1 (Swine Flu) virus. This will almost certainly be the largest mass vaccination program since the 1970’s. Communicating the specifics of the threat, need for two vaccinations, risks associated, etc will pose a major challenge in risk communications.

To help PIO’s prepare for all this, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Health & Human Services, and other areas of the federal government are gearing up their guidance. Consultants, like High Noon are providing templates and educational videos, and academia is also rising to the challenge.

One of the best in the latter group are the materials coming from the North Carolina Center for Public Health Preparedness. Among the offerings on their web site are a variety of “pre-packaged training modules” perfect for briefing elected officials, school boards, and your own staff. You’ll find PowerPoint presentations, PDF files, and even on-line courses to help prepare you for the pandemic, no matter how mild or severe it might be.

They’ve also collected related resource materials from other government agencies, etc. and made their site a “one stop shop” for public health officials and other agencies seeking training resources.

Their on-line training course; “E is for Epidemiology” is a five-part training series developed by NCCPHP to introduce non-epidemiologists to the basic concepts of epidemiology, and it’s a perfect introduction for PIO’s who may be called on to explain how the virus spreads to the public, & the media.

You learn the basics of how outbreaks are detected, how the virus spreads, and surveillance methods used to track it’s progress through a community. Armed with this knowledge, and related training on how to mitigate risk, PIO’s can speak with authority as they address the issue.

This resource is key part of our recommended five step process for preparing for the coming flu season:

• Educate yourself, your staff, key stakeholders, and elected officials now on the threat, methods to reduce risk, and your agencies plans for dealing with the pandemic in the Fall.
• Work with school boards and educators to begin communicating this information to parents early in the school year. When vaccination programs begin in earnest, or if an outbreak is detected in your community, it should come as no surprise to parents if you’re doing your job properly.
• Prepackage media resources, Video News Releases (VNR’s), pre-packaged press releases, and so called “Dark Web Sites” now to be ready for a variety of scenarios in the Fall.
• Update your public communications plan to include Social Media such as Twitter, Facebook, and Web 2.0 resources. The public will turn to these for information regardless of your use or lack of use. The only question is does your agency want to be part of the solution, or simply doing rumor control.
• Take steps to protect yourself, your family, and your staff now. Plan for absenteeism and the need for child care during an outbreak. You can’t help others if you have to worry about yourself.

High Noon is offering a variety of products and services that may be of use to you. These include a special seminar  called “Social Media for PIO’s”  and the creation of pre-packaged Video News Releases, dark web sites, press releases, and crisis communications packages. Please contact us if we can be of assistance to you or your agency.

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"The Situation is Fluid"

After any  major incident, effective emergency management is a bit like a good Jazz performance. Years of training, craftsmanship, and experience give way to an inspirational improv—where new riffs are created to create order out of chaos.

Or as one EM I know puts it, “You need to liquid, flexible isn’t good enough”.

Despite all the SOP’s, efforts at mitigation, and contingency planning, you find yourself facing a situation filled with things that you could never have expected, and being rigid in your approach will only make things worse.

For those interested in seeing how human beings respond to this situations, consider devoting some Tivo space to the Discovery Channel’s new post-apocalyptic reality show, where participants are put into a simulated major disaster in a downtown Los Angeles warehouse.

Before you scoff at this, consider that the participants are a mixture of engineers, doctors, handymen, and even an ER nurse. Some are educated, while others rely on a healthy dose of common sense and street cred.

Just like the in the real world, those who you think might do well in this situation don’t…and those who you think wouldn’t last a week end up being the best under pressure. Mix in some fascinating commentary from experts on technology, post traumatic stress, and disaster medicine, and you’ve got TV that’s tailor made for Emergency Managers.

Participants in this experiment must deal with security issues, loss of electrical power and running water, food supplies, medical care, and basic hygine. Almost as interesting as the psychology of the show, are the simulated conditions that producers come up with. Could someone consider hiring these guys to plan the next major TOPOFF exercise? “Mulage” doesn’t come close to this.

It airs Tuesday nights at 10PM EST, and it’s the best guilty little pleasure since CBS cancelled “Jericho”. (BTW, “NUTS!” to CBS for that move)

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A recent study from John Hopkins University revealed that as many as one in six health care workers would not report for duty in the event of a pandemic outbreak, regardless of it’s severity.

The report of the survey, “Assessment of Local Public Health Workers’ Willingness to Respond to Pandemic Influenza through Application of the Extended Parallel Process Model,” published in the journal PLoS ONE documented a cross section of Maryland public health workers to determine their attitudes regarding a potential pandemic response.

During the SARS outbreak and the early days of the HIV/AIDS virus, the unwillingness of some health care workers to respond to contagious events was noted.  Planning for a given number of absences has since incorporated this reality, but efforts to address the problem with training and other motivating factors has lagged behind.

With the lack of surge capacity within the health care system already noted, large spread absenteeism would further aggravate efforts to combat the outbreak.

The Hopkins study goes beyond past efforts by also documenting factors that affected respondents attitude about their response duties. For instance, a direct correlation is noted between a person’s perceived importance  to their agencies response mission, and their willingness to report for duty.

Building on this factor, and including proper motivation in training sessions may help reduce the number of absent workers during a public health emergency. Required reading to be sure…

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Cases Surge in the UK

Last week, the World Health Organization asked members to cease reporting the number of individual cases of Swine Flu (H1N1) as the numbers increased to a level where the workload of reporting as simply too great, and individual cases numbers became less meaningful.

The Associated Press carried a nice recap of the WHO’s remarks, along with several other news organizations.

One underreported comment was that WHO announced that almost 800 people have died from the disease in the past four months. This is more than the H5N1 bird flu strain has killed in six years. Even in this mild form, it’s rapid transmission and ability to grow easily in the upper respiratory tract mean that those numbers will surge in the Fall and Winter as the US enters it’s traditional flu season.

The larger fear is that the virus will mutate to acquire widespread immunity to anti-viral medications, or become a more lethal form of influenza similar to the pattern of the 1918 Spanish Flu which reemerged in the Fall flu season as a very effective killer.

On the public communications front, the major challenge will be convincing the public of the need to get two separate vaccinations this season. One for the “regular” seasonal flu, and then later in the year, a hoped for vaccine for Swine Flu (H1N1). We’re urging PIO’s to begin this educational effort now and especially as schools reopen in the coming weeks. Meet with your school boards, and elected local officials to outline what the coming Fall will hold, and provide them with guidance for their own communications efforts with parents.

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Critical Care Could Face Major Challenge In The Fall

Reports from the Southern Hemisphere continue to bode ill for the upcoming flu season in the United States and Europe. An article in the UK Telegraph give voice to their concerns that hospitals may not be able to respond adaquately to the pandemic this fall, especially in the area of critical care.

Intensive Care Beds May Be Swamped

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Podcast: The Power of Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
The International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) Technology Council, in partnership with the U.S. Fire Administration, has produced a new podcast, The Power of GIS.

This 10 minute video offers a quick tutorial for fire chiefs and decision makers interested in using GIS.Geographical Information Systems take many forms, but are of almost unlimited value to first responders, emergency managers, and elected officials.

The video has 3 components: understanding GIS, partnering with the GIS community, and seeing the power of GIS.

We’re recommending that all our clients consider adding GIS capabilities to their agencies, including volunteer agencies. While most think of customized proprietary solutions for their GIS needs, many low cost or free solutions are also available.

For example, “Google Earth” has been harnessed by many agencies by designing custom overlays to display important information and real time data.

Amateur Radio uses a system called “APRS- Automatic Position Reporting System” that allows users to track mobile and portable units in real time and plot their locations over maps that contain other forms of data, such as weather radar imagery. This can be vital in keeping storm spotters safe and providing the most accurate information back to served agencies.

Anyone seeking a great introduction to this technology is encouraged to review this video:

Watch Now

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PIO's Brace for A Busy Fall Season

Newspapers around the country yesterday carried the news that the Swine Flu (H1N1) virus is more viralent that originally thought. A recent study revealed that the virus is able to reproduce in the upper respirator tract much better than the so called “seasonal” flu. This means that infections of the virus will result in more cases of pneumonia and ultimately, greater loss of life than the seasonal flu.

In fact, the virus closely resembles the 1918 Spanish Flu which killed millions worldwide. There were lots of great recaps out there, including this one from MSNBC; “Swine Flu resembles feared 1918 flu, study shows”.

For Public Information Officers, it’s becoming clear that the Fall and Winter of 2009 will be a busy year regardless of exactly how deadly the returning virus is. It seems almost certain that the United States will undertake it’s largest public vaccination program since the 1970’s. The vaccination program will focus it’s effort on school children, and health care workers/first responders in the initial phase.

PIO’s will face a number of daunting challenges this Fall:

• Public Apathy: The hype surrounding Swine Flu this Spring was followed by relatively few cases in the US, and most of them have been mild. Only a handful of deaths have occurred nationally, and for most of the public, the threat seems like a replay of the “Y2K Scare”. Getting them to reengage and take actions to prepare for the virus’s return will prove quite a challenge.
• Rapidly Changing Scenario: There are an almost infinite set of variables between now and the end of the year. Will manufacturers be able to produce enough doses of the vaccine in time? What side effects will be encountered from those who take the vaccine, and in what numbers? How will parents react to a mandatory vaccination program? Will the virus mutate during the Summer into an even more viral form, perhaps with immunity from anti-viral drugs? Will school closings and cancellation of public gatherings become necessary? Will wide spread absenteeism affect delivery of important goods and services? How will all of this affect our already weak economy? Dealing with such a large number of variables makes public communication planning difficult.
• The local situation may not be reflected in the national media coverage. Local media continues to shrink in most markets, and more citizens rely on national news outlets for their information. This makes alternative communications vital to small agencies. If your local newspaper has only 12% readership, you can’t rely on it to be your only voice on this issue. Plan now to use your web site, e-mail lists, and Social Networking tools to get timely information to your audience.

To aid our clients, High Noon will be preparing a special series of articles and planning tools to be presented in the month of July.

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Public Health ramps up for his biggest challenge in decades.

The morning’s press clippings brought lots of goverage of the “Flu Summit” but perhaps the best was this recap from the Associated Press;

By LAURAN NEERGAARD

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration put the states on notice Thursday: Swine flu vaccinations are likely to be ready this fall with the looming threat of the disease’s resurgence, so figure out now how to deliver them.

“We want to make sure we are not promoting panic but we are promoting vigilance and preparation,” President Barack Obama said in a phone call from Italy to the National Institutes of Health, where his Cabinet officials were leading a swine flu summit with 500 state and local officials.

No final decision has been made on vaccination, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told the meeting.

But studies with experimental doses of the new swine flu vaccine are set to start in early August, to see if they’re safe and seem to work. If all goes well, some vaccine could start to roll out in mid-October, she said.

Probably first in line for shots would be school-age children, young adults with risky conditions like asthma, pregnant women and health workers, she added.

“We need your help now to prepare” so those shots actually get to people’s arms, Sebelius told state officials.

Only limited amounts of vaccine will be available at first, but she warned that even a modest vaccination campaign “will involve extraordinary efforts throughout this country.”

Swine flu may have faded from the headlines but it’s still sickening people in the U.S. and especially abroad and is almost certain to worsen when influenza-friendly fall temperatures arrive.

“We must avoid complacency,” Sebelius said.

The government estimates that 1 million Americans so far have been infected with the never-before-seen virus known formally by its scientific family name, H1N1.

No longer do many public health experts warn of the new virus’ “return” in the fall. Summer’s heat and humidity usually chase away influenza, but the swine flu has never left. Children are spreading it in summer camps — 50 outbreaks documented so far — and U.S. deaths have reached 170.

It has spread worldwide, and is causing serious problems in parts of the Southern Hemisphere, where it’s currently flu season.

In the U.S., even if the virus doesn’t mutate to become more dangerous, greater spread is considered inevitable as students return to crowded classrooms and temperatures drop — and regular winter flu makes its own return.

“This fall, it’s daunting, all that will be required,” said Paul Jarris, executive director of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials.

At the top of his worry list is finding enough workers for two vaccination campaigns.

The 100 million-plus doses of regular winter flu vaccine are set for the usual October inoculation start. But those shots won’t protect against swine flu.

Looking back at school closings that disrupted the spring, communities also are struggling to determine when such a drastic step — one that has the chain reaction of parents missing work — is necessary.

A key theme to Thursday’s summit: Consider now how your family would handle a disruption even bigger than what happened last spring when the outbreak began. To spur those discussions, HHS will host a contest — at http://www.flu.gov — for the best anti-flu video to turn into a national public service announcement.

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A Compelling Case for Changing Public Communication Models

A compelling case for the adoption of Web 2.0 technology in the field of emergency management is made by author Laurie Van Leuven in her thesis “Optimizing Citizen Engagement During Emergencies Through The Use of 2.o Technologies” published in March 2009.
You can read extensive excerpts from her thesis on the “Big Medicine Web Site”, which is devoted to EMS.

Ms. Van Leuven makes a compelling case for the wider adoption of these technologies by emergency managers, and the need to transform existing public communication models from a “one way” messaging strategy to a “two way” model that encourages the involvement of citizens during disasters.

One thing that is clear is that this communication will take place with or without the active involvement of emergency management professionals. Ignoring social media or not actively incorporating it into your emergency action plans only opens the flood gates to rumors and misinformation, and lessens your agencies ability gather situational awareness that is so vital to a response effort.

Despite overwhelming evidence that the public is adopting these forms of media in record numbers, many agencies at all levels of government continue to “sit on the fence” when it comes to social media. The arguments made in this thesis should make that decision harder and harder to defend. Must reading for all PIO’s.

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