Emergency Preparedness

MedChi Disaster Preparedness Committee

The Disaster Preparedness Task Force was formed in 2002 in order to study the role of MedChi in Disaster Preparedness for the State of Maryland.  The task set forth was to develop recommendations for preparing Maryland physicians and other practitioners for public health disasters, including terrorist actions, and for utilizing MedChi and other professional organizations toward that end and coordinating physician efforts with voluntary professional agencies.  In 2006, the task force became a standing MedChi Committee.

Summary of Recommendations adopted at the September 2010 House of Delegates Meeting:

The recommendations developed by the committee to assure that MedChi continues to play a role in disaster preparedness in the state are as follow:

1. MedChi should monitor information and keep physicians informed in a disaster or public health emergency utilizing FRED and a liaison relationship with the DHMH to receive information and email/facsimile lists to disseminate it.  MedChi should conduct drills at least annually to test and evaluate the effectiveness of these communication links.
2. MedChi should update its web site for disaster preparedness information and education.
3. MedChi should encourage and promote Basic Disaster Life Support (BDLS) and Advanced Disaster Life Support (ADLS) training and promote additional educational opportunities for physician education in the realm of disaster preparedness.
4. MedChi should promote enrollment in the MPVC and educational opportunities in disaster preparedness in its publications and at its Annual Meeting.
5. MedChi should encourage physicians to join Maryland’s formal organized volunteer programs.
6. MedChi should study the Uniform Emergency Volunteer Act, compare it to current law, and make recommendations for additional liability protections for physicians who provide care during disasters.

Physician Actions

• Join the MedChi Public Health and Terror Alert Listserve.
• Learn about state and local resources.
• Participate in Maryland’s sentinel surveillance system.
• Enroll in public health trainings.
• Prepare your staff and practice to respond in the event of an emergency.
• Learn the protocols, policies and procedures of your local health department, hospitals, and clinics in the event of an emergency.
• Become a registered volunteer.

Resources

Trainings

• TRAIN Maryland

Websites

• Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene- Office of Preparedness and Response
• Pandemic Influenza
• Maryland Flu Preparedness
• Local Health Departments
• Emergency Preparedness
• Hospital Preparedness
• University of Maryland Health Sciences and Human Services Library
• Johns Hopkins Center for Public Health Preparedness
• University of Maryland Center for Health and Homeland Security
• CDC Emergency Preparedness and Response
• Information for the general public Preparedness Today:
  What You Need to Do
• Overview of Emergency Preparedness Resources by Guardian Insurance

Articles

• Avian Flu: Is Your Practice Ready? Robert Lowes, Medical Economics July 21, 2006
• Preparing for Pandemic Influenza in Maryland Henry G. Taylor, MedChi Physician April 2006
• Bioterrorism: Are We Prepared? Michael Sauri, Maryland Medicine, Spring 2000
• The Role of the Louisiana FIMR in Post-Hurricane Relief Efforts

Contact Information

For more information on Emergency Preparedness, please contact:

Roberta M. Herbst, M.S.
Program Manager
Center for a Healthy Maryland
Phone: 410-539-0872 or 800-492-1056, ext. 3340
Fax: 410-649-4131
e-mail: rherbst@medchi.org

or

Joyce Duffy-Bilanow
Disaster Preparedness Committee, MedChi
Phone: 410-539.0872 or 800-492-1056, ext. 3312
Fax: 410-547-0915
email: jduffy-bilanow@medchi.org