In This Issue 
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YNHHS-CEPDR Program and Services
YNHHS-CEPDR offers the following additional services to hospitals, other healthcare delivery organizations, emergency management professionals, the business community and others.
- Assessments/Evaluations
- Emergency Management Operations/Outsourcing of Services
- Business Continuity Planning
- Exercises
- Situational Awareness/Analysis
- Planning
- Education and Training
- Affordable Care Act/Healthcare Reform
- Program Management
- Incident Response Support
For additional information about our services, please call us at
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Stay Informed with our Other Publications!
The Readiness Dispatch
Read about recent MRC, ECP and RPVP volunteer activities in CT.
Solutions
Solutions is a quarterly newsletter that provide practical and cost-efficient solutions to today's healthcare challenges.
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Checkout the Toolbox: A Resource Guide for Health Care Providers
YNHHS-CEPDR maintains a toolbox of useful links to health care related resources. These links are updated often so please check it regularly.
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Ebola in the United States /
CT Governor Malloy Declares Public Health Emergency
 The first case of the Ebola virus has been confirmed in the United States. According to the New York Times (September 30, 2014), "A man who took a commercial flight from Liberia that landed in Dallas on Sept. 20 has been found to have the Ebola virus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Tuesday. He is the first traveler to have brought the virus to the United States on a passenger plane and the first in whom Ebola has been diagnosed outside of Africa in the current outbreak." The CDC has taken several precautions in an effort to prevent the spread of West Africa's Ebola epidemic to the United States. CDC officials assume that it is only a matter of time before someone infected with the virus presents to a hospital or other healthcare facility. For this reason, the CDC has issued comprehensive checklists for Ebola preparedness for hospitals and for other healthcare providers. The checklists provide information to assist healthcare personnel to rapidly assess whether individuals are infected. Included in the checklist are steps to help healthcare workers treat infected patients and protect themselves against transmission, as well as online resources to help hospitals and other healthcare facilities prepare. Click here for the Health Care Provider Checklist and here for the Health Care Facility Checklist. For general information on the outbreak and to monitor updates from the CDC, click here. On October 7, 2014, CT Governor Malloy declared a public health emergency in response to the epidemic of the Ebola virus. This will enable the Commissioner of Public Health to "isolate or quarantine" individuals or groups "the Commissioner reasonably believes to have be exposed to, infected with, or otherwise at risk of passing the Ebola virus." |
 | | Photo Credit: CDC |
As of October 6, 2014, forty three states and the District of Columbia have confirmed nearly five hundred cases of Enterovirus D68 (EV- D68). The CDC believes that the number of states reporting cases, and that of patients who are infected with EV D68 will rise in the upcoming weeks. The virus causes mild to severe symptoms. Mild symptoms often include runny nose, sneezing, coughing, body and muscle aches and fever. Severe symptoms may include polio-like paralysis, difficulty breathing (especially in those with asthma) and wheezing. "EV-D68 likely spreads from person to person when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or touches contaminated surfaces" (CDC, 2014). For more information about EV D68, please visit the CDC's list of frequently asked questions by clicking here.
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Communicating with Family and Friends During a Disaster
A focus of Preparedness Month (September) was how to reconnect with your loved ones after a disaster. At times, we focus on the preparedness kit and forget to establish a communications plan with family. FEMA provides tips for establishing a plan to communicate with loved ones in the wake of a disaster. Tips include:
- Completing a contact card for each member of your family and have them placed in purses, wallets and book bags;
- Having a contact that does not live in your area that each family member can notify when they are safe if unable to contact family in the affected area. An out-of-area contact may be in a better position to communicate among separated family members;
- Using text messaging when telephone calls are not possible because of network disruptions; and
- Using social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter to alert family members that you are safe. You can also use the American Red Cross's Safe and Well program.
Click here for additional information and tools to help you and your community establish communications plans.
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