About the Guardian
The Guardian of Public Health is a monthly newsletter from the Bureau of EMS, Trauma, and Preparedness (BETP) within the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). The Guardian aims to provide its readers with relevant content on topics that affect the public health of citizens and communities in Michigan. For questions or comments please contact Kerry Chamberlain at chamberlaink2@michigan.gov.
Bureau of Laboratories 2016
Influenza Surveillance
The
start of the 2016-17 flu season is here, and we have already seen sporadic flu
activity in the State of Michigan. The first official week of the flu season
was October 2 - 8, 2016. During this week, the Michigan Department of Health
and Human Services (MDHHS) Bureau of Laboratories (BOL) confirmed the first two
cases of influenza for this season as human seasonal influenza A/H3.
Influenza
associated hospitalizations and associated pediatric mortality are listed on
the 2016 Nationally Notifiable Conditions. The Sentinel Physician and Sentinel
Laboratory Programs, consisting of medical providers and laboratory sites from
different locations throughout Michigan, provide surveillance data for
influenza activity. While participation in this program is voluntary, the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and MDHHS BOL highly encourage
continual participation from all sentinel providers.
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Emergency
Preparedness: Small Steps Towards Disaster Preparedness
Do 1 Thing is a national
nonprofit based in the Lansing Office of Emergency Management. Started in 2006
as a primarily web-based program, Do1Thing has now turned into an award-winning
program recognized by organizations such as the CDC and FEMA. Our 12-month
program features a new preparedness theme each month and that are easy,
cost-friendly tips to help individuals and business prepare for emergencies and
disasters. You can learn more at www.do1thing.com.
The theme for November is “Emergency Supplies”
Emergencies are easier to
handle when you have prepared ahead of
time. Put together an emergency kit with important items to keep at home,
and a go bag with items you will need to take with you if you evacuate. Think
about what you and your family would need in a disaster. You can make kits for
your home, car or workplace. Emergencies can happen anywhere.
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NYU Report: U.S. Public’s Perception of Zika Risk: Awareness, Knowledge, and Receptivity to Public Health Interventions
The public health sector is presently on high alert for evidence of local transmission of the Zika virus in the continental United States as well as infections that have been acquired elsewhere and imported into the U.S. A number of national, state, and local health officials are actively engaged in vector control, surveillance, and diagnostic and communication activities focused on the Zika virus. Even if major outbreaks do not materialize, public health officials are concerned about the possibility of a sharp increase in babies born with congenital birth defects and other neurological deficits linked to Zika viral infections among pregnant women.
This high level of situational awareness and concern within the public health sector, though, is not mirrored among the general public. Although most U.S. residents are generally aware of the virus, their specific knowledge regarding the virus’s symptoms and transmission routes is incomplete, their personal sense of threat of Zika infection is relatively muted, and their receptivity to various public health intervention strategies varies by such factors as their gender, their age, and their political ideology, among other characteristics.
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