News and Articles

It starts with Hello: Beginning outreach to the disability community

Alice Frame – Program Coordinator - Health Promotion for People with Disabilities Initiative - Disabilities Health Unit  – Michigan Department of health and Human Services

The importance of collaboration between emergency preparedness and disability programs cannot be overstated. It’s crucial.

There are several key contexts in which that collaboration can be very beneficial – for example, planning, exercise participation, evaluation, and partnership building.  However, outreach and starting that conversation can seem intimidating.  

It starts with Hello: Beginning outreach to the disability community>>

Training & Events

Coping with the Stress That Environmental Contamination Can Cause

Environmental contamination can disrupt life as usual and cause stress. The Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry (ATSDR) has released a new fact sheet that explains why contamination can cause stress and suggests steps people can take to cope.

This webinar assists health professionals on how to use this fact sheet with community members.

December 13, 2017 2-3pm EST

Adobe Connect Link     

Audio line dial in: 855-348-8390
Participant code: 2398272

The Michigan Update

Flu Prevention Starts and Ends with You: MDHHS Urges You to Continue Vaccinating Patients against the Flu

Jalyn Ingalls, MA, Influenza Outreach Coordinator, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Division of Immunization

Influenza vaccination efforts in clinical settings should continue throughout the entire flu season, as the flu vaccine will still provide ample protection from influenza throughout the winter and spring months. Healthcare providers often turn in their flu vaccine after the holiday season and stop vaccinating patients against the flu. This practice leads to many missed opportunities to protect patients from influenza.

The majority of flu vaccinations administered in Michigan and documented in the Michigan Care Improvement Registry (MCIR) are during October and November, with a sharp decline in the number of doses administered after December.

Flu Prevention Starts and Ends with You: MDHHS Urges You to Continue Vaccinating Patients against the Flu>>

Research

Emergency Legal Authority and the Opioid Crisis

Opioid-overdose deaths in the United States have steadily increased for the past 15 years, with more than 33,000 such deaths reported in 2015.  The epidemic is unfolding on two fronts: use of prescription opioid pain relievers (OPRs) accounts for approximately half of opioid-overdose deaths, and deaths from heroin and synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, obtained illicitly, have increased dramatically during the past 5 years.

In the face of this public health crisis, various policies have been enacted — particularly at the state level — often to address OPR prescribing and limit opportunities for OPR diversion. For example, all 50 states have established prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) that collect information about individuals’ prescription-drug history in an electronic database. Eleven states have laws regulating pain-management clinics, and several states have enacted laws to limit the dosage or duration of OPR prescriptions.

Emergency Legal Authority and the Opioid Crisis>>

Tools & Resources

2017 National Preparedness Report

The National Preparedness Report summarizes the progress that the Nation has made in becoming more secure and resilient across five mission areas: Prevention, Protection, Mitigation, Response, and Recovery. The report identifies crosscutting findings that apply across the mission areas, as well as key findings for each individual mission area. The report offers all levels of government, the private and nonprofit sectors, and the public practical insights into preparedness to support decisions about program priorities, resource allocation, and community actions. 

2017 National Preparedness Report>>