Preparing for a Pandemic: Health Provider Planning

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Preparing for a PandemicHealth Provider Planning

• Arizona Arts, Sciences and Technology Academy
• April 21, 2006

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Outline

• General Preparedness
• Communications
• Supplies/Equipment
• Staffing
• Transmission Prevention
• Continued Challenges

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General Preparedness

• Link with existing emergency planning process.
• Focus on all sites
• Respiratory Etiquette
• Signage
• Hand sanitizers

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General Preparedness

• Patient isolation and co-horting plans
• Employee education

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General Preparedness

• Plan Flexibility
• Same general plan for similar processes,
• Consideration for inpatient and outpatient
  services,
• Ability to modify easily and rapidly with
  changing information.

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General Preparedness

• Collaboration essential for planning
• State Health Department
• Local Health Department
• Area Healthcare Facilities
• Larger System

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Communication Strategies

• Pre-Event Communications
• Organizations Planning Process
• Response Issues
• Disease/Process Facts

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Communication StrategiesPre-Event

• Newsletters
• Internal Publications
• Brown Bags

• Intranet Sites
• FAQs
• Communication Archives
• Prepared Scripts

Emergency
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Communication StrategiesDuring the Event

• Computer Alerts

• E-Mail Distribution Lists
• Mayo Intranet Emergency website

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Supplies and Equipment

• Just in Time Inventories
• Competition among organizations using same vendor
• Establishment of emergency supply cache.
• Regional supply caches.
• Other Challenges

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Staffing

• Estimated that up to 30 of the work-
• force will be out ill at any given time. An
• additional percentage may be out with ill family
• Members or fearful to come to work that they
• may catch something.
• At the same time, health care provides will be
• inundated with ill patients, how can you be
• ready?

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Staffing

• Pre-event Planning Essential
• Education on isolation practices and respiratory
  etiquette.
• Dependent and elder care options (well and sick).
• Redeployment of staff
• Promotion of Family Emergency Planning

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Staffing

• Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with
  staffing agencies.
• Identification of additional resources
• Employee significant others
• Retirees
• Licensed staff in non-patient care roles

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Transmission Prevention

• Pre-scheduled patients from affected areas.
• Phone triage triggers.
• Establishment of Evaluation Centers.
• Patient Isolation/Cohorting
• Home Care instruction Sheets

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Continued Challenges

• Management of worried well
• Emergency supplies/medications disbursement and
  rotation to avoid expiration issues.
• Staffing

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Contact Information

• Beth Heinrich, R.N.
• Mayo Clinic
• 13400 East Shea Blvd
• Scottsdale, AZ 85259
• [phone]
• heinrich.beth_at_mayo.edu