2018 NACCHO Preparedness Summit Round-Up

Posted by Sarah Levin-Lederer on May 18th, 2018 Posted in: NLM Resources, Public Health
Tags: Emergency Preparedness (EPP), professional development, Public Health

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The 2018 NACCHO Preparedness Summit (April 17-20, 2018-Atlanta, GA) was my first chance to tell people about the emergency preparedness resources available from NLM including DIMRC and MedlinePlus.

1. Check out the Disaster Information Management Research Center (DIMRC) to find resources for preparedness professionals, community organizations and the general public on preparing your community and your family for natural and man-made disasters.
2. MedlinePlus has health information in plain language, including information on disaster preparedness for families and communities.

I also got to hear about free resources available from organizations across the US.

1. Do you need to find a way to collaborate across departments? Or between organizations? Let Mesa County, CO teach you how to use FREE Google tools to do everything from mapping and tracking resources to putting up a website.  Learn more on their interactive Google site.
2. Do you live in a rural area and want to help your community plan for disaster recovery? Check out the toolkit created by the Texas Chapter of Planners4Health (a project of the American Planners Association).  The toolkit lays out best practices for bringing rural communities together after an emergency to help in the recovery.
3. Do you work with older adults? Do you want to help them prepare for emergencies?  Check out the interactive toolkit from the RAND Cooperation to find out how your organization can help prepare older adults for emergencies and help make them more resilient.

Before joining NNLM-NER in February, I worked for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health on public health preparedness projects including teaching people how to prepare themselves and their families for emergencies. It was great to be able to bridge my past in public health preparedness and present with NNLM-NER by meeting folks at the 2018 NACCHO Preparedness Summit.  And I’m looking forward to continuing to bring NLM and NNLM resources to public health and preparedness professionals.