On September 6, 2019, the Minnesota Department of Health activated Incident Command System (ICS) in response to vaping-associated lung injuries. MDH activates ICS when a public health emergency response requires coordination across multiple divisions and with external partners. Since the initial activation, over 80 staff members have been mobilized to work on the response. These staff come from a variety of divisions across MDH, including the Executive Office, Health Promotion and Chronic Disease, Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Prevention and Control, the Public Health Laboratory, the Office of Statewide Health Improvement Initiatives, Community Health, Child and Family Health, and Environmental Health. Lung injury cases associated with the use of e-cigarette, or vaping, products are currently being reported to the CDC from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and two U.S. territories (Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands).
For more information on the MDH response, including up-to-date case counts, please visit the Vaping-Associated Lung Injuries Webpage.
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Every five years, the CDC and ASPR require a statewide full-scale exercise (FSE) to test emergency plans. Minnesota’s exercise will take place in June of 2020, and will use an anthrax response scenario. Community Health Boards/Tribal Health Departments, Health Care Coalitions, the MDH Department Operations Center (DOC) and other partners will play in the exercise. This exercise will test distribution and dispensing of medical countermeasures (MCM), health care surge, partner communications, access and functional needs population planning, and more.
MDH is coordinating several workgroups to develop content for the FSE. On the public health side, a Community Health Board/Tribal Health Department workgroup engages local public and tribal health in planning and developing exercise objectives. The Regional Health Care Preparedness Coordinators (RHPCs) participate in a similar workgroup to develop health care exercise objectives. All partners who support operations in MDH’s receiving warehouse are represented in a third workgroup to plan the testing of Minnesota’s distribution operations.
The 2019 Midwest Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) Regional Partners meeting was held last month in St. Paul, bringing together federal, state, tribal, local, academic, and other partners from across multiple sectors in the Midwest. The goal of the meeting was to share and explore information and ideas that advance drought early warning and preparedness in this 8-state region. Several staff from the Center for Emergency Preparedness and Response had the opportunity to attend!
 
 Emergency Kit Checklist for Pets
Emergencies come in many forms: fires, hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods, violent storms, and even terrorism. They can affect everyone, including pets. Are you prepared to protect your entire family? Read below for important preparedness checklists and visit the CDC website for more information on keeping pets safe during an emergency.
Documents
- Photocopied veterinary records
- Rabies certificate
- Vaccinations
- Medical summary
- Prescriptions for medications
- Most recent heartworm test result (dogs)
- Most recent FeLV/FIV test result (cats)
- Photocopied registration information (e.g. proof of ownership or adoption records)
- Pet description(s) (e.g. breed, sex, color, and weight)
- Recent photographs of each of your pets
- Waterproof container for documents
- Microchip information (e.g. microchip number, and name and number of the microchip company)
- Your contact information (phone numbers and addresses for your family and friends or relatives you may be staying with)
Water, Food, Medications
- 2-week supply of food stored in waterproof containers for each animal
- 2-week supply of water for each animal
- Nonspill food and water dishes
- Manual can opener
- Feeding instructions for each animal
- 2-week supply of any medications (if applicable)
- Medication instructions (if applicable)
- 1-month supply of flea, tick, and heartworm preventative
Other Supplies
- Leash, collar with ID, and harness
- For cats: litter box and litter
- For dogs: plastic bags for poop
- Toys
- Appropriate-sized pet carrier with bedding, blanket, or towel (with your pet’s name, your name, and contact information on each carrier)
- Pet first aid book and first aid kit
- Cleaning supplies for accidents (paper towels, plastic bags, and disinfectant)
Continuity of Operations (COOP)
MN.TRAIN Course ID 1085379
January 30, 2020 at 10AM
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