| Describe public health role in emergencies | DESCRIBE the public health role in emergency response in a wide range of emergencies that might arise (e.g., “This department provides surveillance, investigation, and public information in disease outbreaks and collaborates with other agencies in biological, environmental, and weather emergencies.”). |
| Locate emergency plan | IDENTIFY and LOCATE the agency emergency response plan (or the pertinent portion of the plan). |
| Demonstrate communication equipment | DEMONSTRATE the correct use of all communication equipment used for emergency communication. |
| Describe functional role | DESCRIBE your functional role(s) in emergency response. |
| Identify role in plan | IDENTIFY your functional role in the agency's bioterrorism response plan (including, as appropriate, protocols for administration of medication, equipment and supplies). |
| Demonstrate role in drills | DEMONSTRATE your functional role(s) in emergency response in regular drills. |
| Describe chain of command | DESCRIBE the chain of command in emergency response. |
| Describe communication role | DESCRIBE communication role(s) in emergency response within the agency using established communications systems, with the media, the general public, and personal relations (family, neighbors). |
| Implement bioterrorism role | IMPLEMENT your individual bioterrorism response functional role. |
| Maintain partner communication | MAINTAIN regular communication with partner professionals in other agencies involved in emergency response (includes maintaining a current directory of partners and identifying appropriate methods for contact in emergencies, contributing to effective community wide response through leadership, team building, negotiation and conflict resolution). |
| Recognize unusual events | RECOGNIZE unusual events that might indicate an emergency and DESCRIBE appropriate action (e.g., communicate clearly within the chain of command). |
| Creative thinking to challenges | APPLY creative problem solving and flexible thinking to unusual challenges within your functional responsibilities and EVALUATE effectives of all actions taken. |
| Identify limits and key resources | IDENTIFY limits to your own knowledge and IDENTIFY key system resources for referring matters that exceed those limits. |
| Test bioterrorism communication protocols | TEST protocols for bioterrorism specific communication and agency interaction at regular intervals with bioterrorism response partner agencies and organizations. |
| Conduct bioterrorism preparedness | CONDUCT workforce bioterrorism preparedness programs. |
| Plan for 24/7 availability | MAINTAIN written plans for 24/7 availability of specific staff and specialists required during a bioterrorism event. |
| Establish communications roles | ESTABLISH emergency communications roles and responsibilities for bioterrorism response. |
| Identify response resources | IDENTIFY specific resources needed for response to critical biologic agencies (Category A, B, C). |
| Specify safety measures | SPECIFY safety measures to be taken by public health responders in a bioterrorism event, including use for personal protective equipment. |
| Ensure laboratory capacity | ENSURE Level A laboratories can conduct "rule-out" testing, specimen packaging and handling, and referral of suspected biological threat agents to a higher level laboratory and that Level B and Level C laboratories have the capacity and proficiency to identify and confirm biological threat agents and can refer specimens to higher level laboratories for further characterization. |
| Ensure lab bioterrorism plans | ENSURE that laboratories within the jurisdiction or agency have bioterrorism response plans. |
| Identify Level A labs | IDENTIFY Level A laboratories serving the jurisdiction or agency. |
| Maintain info on B and C labs | MAINTAIN contact and location information for Level B/C laboratories in the bioterrorism lab response network serving the agency or jurisdiction. |
| Establish NPS protocols | ESTABLISH protocols for handling and distribution of the National Pharmaceutical Stockpile. |
| Establish lab system | ENSURE a system is established and functioning that provides rapid rule-out testing, referral, identification, confirmation, and characterization of biological threat agents to include rapid reporting of results during a bioterrorism event. |
| Design enhanced surveillance protocols | DESIGN bioterrorism specific protocols for enhanced surveillance, including activating additional personnel (e.g., infection control practitioners, public health nurses, epidemiologists, and data entry clerks from other institutions, jurisdictions and/or agencies). |
| Generate risk assessment plans | GENERATE plans to conduct risk assessments in public health emergencies. |
| Define command modifications | DEFINE modifications to the agency's internal command notification and coordination structure that are required for a bioterrorism response. |
| Disseminate notifiable disease information | DISSEMINATE notifiable disease information and reporting requirements and procedures to healthcare providers on a periodic basis. |
| Establish surge capacity protocols | ESTABLISH protocols to address pubic health surge capacity, including the use of volunteers. |
| Appropriate plan component development | ENSURE that all bioterrorism plan components are developed by appropriate and knowledgeable staff. |
| Ensure gaps are filled | ENSURE that knowledge/skill gaps are identified through emergency response planning, drills and evaluation are filled. |
| Ensure response practice | ENSURE that the agency regularly practices all parts of emergency response. |
| Ensure updated plan | ENSURE the agency (or agency unit) has a written, updated plan for major categories of emergencies that respects the culture of the community and provides for continuity of agency operations. |
| Establish communication infrastructure | ESTABLISH a public health communication infrastructure that receives and transmits data and information for decision support during a bioterrorism event. |
| Establish redundant communications | ESTABLISH redundant communication mechanisms for immediate and reliable voice and secure data communication during a public health emergency. |
| Establish secure communications | ESTABLISH secure communication pathways for use in a bioterrorism event, including computer security policies and safeguards against data loss. |
| Evaluate drills | EVALAUTE every emergency response drill to identify needed internal/external improvements. |
| Evaluate public health laws | EVALUATE/REVIEW the public health laws of the jurisdiction on a regular schedule, to assess that they are current and up-to-date pertaining to bioterrorism events. |
| Authority for risk assessments | GENERATE regulations that provide the authority to conduct risk assessments in bioterrorism events. |
| Identify health professional resources | IDENTIFY pharmaceutical, veterinary, or other resources required for consultation by the agency or jurisdiction during bioterrorism response. |
| Integrate bioterrorism and overall emergency plans | IDENTIFY the needed components of a public health bioterrorism (BT) response plan that is integrated with the overall emergency response plan for the agency. |
| Integrate response plans | INTEGRATE the agency's bioterrorism response plan into the Incident Command or Unified Command System used by other responders (Fire, Police, Etc.) in the jurisdiction. |
| Maintain partner agreements | MAINTAIN agreements with partners from within the jurisdiction and from other jurisdictions to allow the public health agency to secure assistance and other resources. |
| Describe chain of command. | DESCRIBE the chain of command and management system (“incident command system” or similar protocol) for emergency response in the jurisdiction. |
| Implement emergency plan | IMPLEMENT the public health emergency response plan. |
| Activate call-down roster | ACTIVATE a call-down roster using 24-hour contact information to reach bioterrorism response staff and consultants. |
| Ensure communication messages | ENSURE development and delivery of accurate event-specific, science-based communication messages to the public, to health care providers, to the media, and to the response community during a bioterrorism event |
| Activate redundant communications | ACTIVATE redundant communication mechanisms for immediate and reliable voice and secure data communication during a public health emergency. |
| Activate lab plan | ACTIVATE the laboratory bioterrorism response plan. |
| Activate infection control | ACTIVATE emergency public health and infection control measures specific to the bioterrorism event. |
| Establish two-way communications | ESTABLISH two-way emergency communications. |
| Communicate information to partners | COMMUNICATE public health information/roles/capacities/legal authority accurately to all emergency response partners (other public health agencies, other health agencies, and other governmental agencies) during planning, drills and actual emergencies (this includes contributing to effective community-wide response through leadership, team building, negotiation, and conflict resolution). |
| Use communications in bioterrorism event | USE established communication systems for coordination among response community during a bioterrorism event, including those for privileged information. |
| Communicate need for assistance | COMMUNICATE the need for assistance during a bioterrorism event to appropriate resources. |
| Use agency bioterrorism information plan | USE the agency’s bioterrorism-specific pubic information plans, protocols and materials in a bioterrorism event. |
| Perform individual communication | PERFORM your individual communication responsibilities during a bioterrorism event. |
| Activate enhanced surveillance | ACTIVATE enhanced active surveillance protocols to track the scope of the exposure/outbreak. |
| Use agency command structure | USE the agency bioterrorism Unified Incident Command/Management Structure. |
| Identify exposed persons | IDENTIFY persons potentially exposed to a specific bioterrorism agent in need of public health and/or medical intervention. |
| Victim and responder support | PROVIDE public health support as needed for victims and responders within the jurisdiction's response plan. |
| Determine roles through risk assessments | USE risk assessment of potential biologic, chemical or radiological hazards in the community to determine roles and responsibilities of those involved in public health bioterrorism response. |
| Address training gaps | ENSURE that knowledge/skill gaps identified through emergency response evaluation are filled. |
| Evaluate event response | EVALUATE every emergency response to identify needed internal/external improvements. |
| Apply recovery measures | APPLY appropriate science-based public health measures to ensure continued population protection appropriate to the biological threat involved, including follow up of those exposed, vaccinated, or quarantined. |
| Designate media spokesperson | DESIGNATE, or serve as, a media spokesperson during a bioterrorism event, as directed by the PH Official or PH Incident Commander. |
| Inform public in bioterrorism event | USE event specific information and scientific principles of risk communication to inform the public, the media, health care providers and the response community during a bioterrorism event. |