HOSPITALS
AI and 911 Call Systems: A New Ally or a Hidden Risk?
In today’s world, where the unexpected can strike at any moment, the systems designed to protect people – 911 call centers – are facing unprecedented challenges. From natural disasters to sophisticated cyberthreats, the risks to public safety are evolving fast. For example, a devastating wildfire in Lahaina, Maui, in August 2023 destroyed much of the town, causing significant loss of life and property. The call volume overwhelmed 911 dispatchers. A ransomware attack on Change Healthcare…
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Vulnerability and Exploitation – Human Trafficking After Natural Disasters
Benjamin Thomas Greer and Nathan DiPillo
August 28, 2024
Disasters inherently come with known and unknown threats. One looming emerging threat is human trafficking because traffickers capitalize on the vulnerability these events create to exploit victims. However, when properly trained, emergency management and disaster responders are uniquely positioned to identify, prevent, and mitigate exploitation before and after an emergency.
Dual-World Tabletop Exercises – Addressing Unmet Infrastructure Needs
Charles (Chuck) L. Manto
August 21, 2024
The U.S. critical infrastructure is vulnerable to many forms of cyber and electromagnetic threats. This article presents a new tabletop exercise concept for addressing these ongoing threats to critical infrastructure. Similar to medical research groups that involve treatment and control groups, two exercise groups would work simultaneously on the same
Return on Investments in Public Engagement
June Isaacson Kailes
August 14, 2024
Public engagement and participation involve community members in problem-solving, decision-making, and policy development. This article shares some new practices for creating actionable opportunities for key stakeholders to participate in decisions that affect their communities. Result-centered engagement can help protect people with disabilities and other community partners from many adverse impacts
Bridging Preparedness: State Medication Reserves for Pandemics and Beyond
Angie Im
August 14, 2024
New human cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza have been confirmed in the United States. Although most cases like this do not escalate to pandemic status, it is critical that communities be better prepared than they were for COVID-19. However, one study shows that preparedness gaps may hinder these efforts.
Hospitals Archives
A Modern Take on an Age-Old Biological Weapon
Raphael M. Barishansky
June 12, 2024
Reports about North Korea launching balloons filled with fecal matter and propaganda into South Korean territory were intriguing. However, this incident raises public health concerns
Shielding Communities: Public Health Strategies for Natural Hazards
Raphael M. Barishansky and Andrew D. Pickett
May 15, 2024
Public health risks are common concerns when natural hazards occur. However, history shows that the increasing frequency of events and growing population sizes have been
Primary Care Investments to Increase Community Resilience
Angie Im
April 17, 2024
Community health centers are medical lifelines for millions of Americans. However, financial constraints and healthcare workforce challenges strain these critical resources. New initiatives and additional
Mental Awareness to Enhance Preparedness
Andrew (Andy) Altizer
April 17, 2024
Emergency managers, public health officials, and first responders often stress the importance of physical fitness, but what about mental fitness? Without focused mental agility in
Dungeons and Disasters: Gamification of Public Health Responses
Michael Etzel and Michael Prasad
April 10, 2024
New technologies offer new ways to train personnel and exercise public health responses like COVID-19 and prepare response agencies for many other threats and hazards.
Interoperability During Mass Casualty Incidents
Charles J. Guddemi and Catherine L. Feinman
April 3, 2024
During a mass casualty incident, response agencies must be able to communicate in real-time. This means that interoperability plans need to include everyone involved in
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HOSPITALS
AI and 911 Call Systems: A New Ally or a Hidden Risk?
In today’s world, where the unexpected can strike at any moment, the systems designed to protect people – 911 call centers – are facing unprecedented challenges. From natural disasters to sophisticated cyberthreats, the risks to public safety are evolving fast. For example, a devastating wildfire in Lahaina, Maui, in August 2023 destroyed much of the town, causing significant loss of life and property. The call volume overwhelmed 911 dispatchers. A ransomware attack on Change Healthcare…
Most Recent
Lessons in Social Media – Preparing Kids and Community Leaders for Disasters
Patricia Frost and Michael Prasad
August 7, 2024
Addressing children’s needs during a crisis can be challenging. Leveraging social media to create crisis communication campaigns can be an
The Key Bridge Collapse – Through the Lens of Community Lifelines
Michael Prasad
July 17, 2024
The eight major elements of Community Lifelines use traffic-light-type color-coding to categorize the adverse impact status of a disaster. The
Five Key Domains of Incident Management
Aaron Clark-Ginsberg
July 10, 2024
Effective incident management is a set of activities, not policy box-ticking of doctrine that may or may not be followed.
Jane Doe – Responding to Vulnerable Patients
Catherine L. Feinman
June 26, 2024
Despite the prevalence of first responders encountering human trafficking victims, they are not always aware of the signs or proper
Hospitals Archives
Healthcare and Public Health Sector Perspectives
Tanya M. Scherr and Daniel Scherr
October 25, 2023
According to the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, National Health Expenditures (NHE) accounted for $4.3 trillion, or 18.3% of the U.S. gross domestic
Emerging Technologies, Part 3 – AI and Machine Learning
Ian Pleet
October 25, 2023
In Part 3 of a five-part series on emerging technologies, the author focuses on the roles of artificial intelligence and machine learning in responding to
Emerging Technologies, Part 2 – Uncrewed Vehicles
Ian Pleet
October 18, 2023
Part 2 of a five-part series on emerging technologies focuses on technologies designed to perform tasks and reduce human risk. Find out more about these
Emerging Technologies, Part 1 – Information and Communication
Ian Pleet
October 10, 2023
This is Part 1 of a five-part series on emerging technologies that can enhance the management of and response to future emergencies and disasters. This
COVID-19 – Emergency Plans and Readiness Exercises
Rick Christ
October 4, 2023
During the COVID-19 pandemic, plans’ failures had little to do with the genomic sequence of the virus and more about what these plans were not:
Reducing Workplace Violence in Healthcare Facilities
Corina Solé Brito
September 27, 2023
Violence in healthcare facilities significantly challenges patients, providers, support staff, visitors, and first responders. However, healthcare-specific information and tools can help protect staff, patients, and
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