scholarly journals 1653. Strong Partnership and Effective Communication Between a Tertiary Hospital and a County Health Department Were Critical in Controlling a 2019 Measles Outbreak in Southeast Michigan (SEM)

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. S604-S605
Author(s):  
Trini Mathew ◽  
Paul Johnson ◽  
Diane Kamerer ◽  
Amber Jones ◽  
Jeffrey Ditkoff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Index Case ◽  
Beaumont Hospital ◽  
Health Department ◽  
Healthcare Personnel ◽  
Infectious Period ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Initial Report ◽  
Oakland County ◽  
County Health Department ◽  
Airborne Disease

Abstract Background Measles, declared eliminated in the US 2000, is a reemerging vaccine-preventable airborne disease. The 2019 case count (704 as of April 30, 2019) has surpassed the number of 2014 cases (667), the highest since 1994. Many healthcare personnel (HCP) have not seen a case of measles, and this lack of clinical experience may contribute to missed or delayed diagnoses leading to its spread. We describe the processes and measures implemented at Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak (B-RO) Michigan in collaboration with the Oakland County Health Department (OCHD) to prevent secondary spread during an outbreak. Methods Soon after the initial report of the index case in Oakland County in March, the B-RO epidemiology team connected with OCHD. As both exposed and suspected cases were expected to seek care at B-RO, a one-page informational document was sent to B-RO providers. This document detailed isolation precautions and testing methods, post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), and contact information. During subsequent days, as measles cases increased, frequent calls between B-RO and OCHD addressed numerous issues, including: media notifications, contact of exposed persons, vaccine and immunoglobulin supply for PEP, safe referral of cases to the EC, and the process of measles specimen submission for testing. As needed, these communications occurred after business hours and during weekends. Serologic testing to confirm measles immunity was ramped up. Results As of April 30, 41 cases have been confirmed in MI associated with the index case. OCHD facilitated the exposure control for 40 patients, of which 6 came to B-RO during their infectious period (Figure 1). To date, there have been no secondary cases developing in B-RO patients, HCPs or visitors, which may be related to successful engineering controls, appropriate protective equipment, mandatory measles immunity confirmation as condition of Beaumont employment since the late 1980s, institution of furlough procedures, PEP for hospitalized patients, and widespread communications with patients, visitors and HCPs (Figure 2). Conclusion During an outbreak, close healthcare facility and local health department collaboration is essential in rapidly limiting an airborne disease outbreak. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.

scholarly journals A Web-Based Tool for Quantification of Potential Gains in Life Expectancy by Preventing Cause-Specific Mortality

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aruna Chandran ◽  
Churong Xu ◽  
Jonathan Gross ◽  
Kathryn M. Leifheit ◽  
Darcy Phelan-Emrick ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heart Disease ◽  
Life Expectancy ◽  
Health Department ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Baltimore City ◽  
Scarce Resources ◽  
Disease Mortality ◽  
Specific Mortality ◽  
Neighborhood Level

Introduction: Local health departments are currently limited in their ability to use life expectancy (LE) as a benchmark for improving community health. In collaboration with the Baltimore City Health Department, our aim was to develop a web-based tool to estimate the potential lives saved and gains in LE in specific neighborhoods following interventions targeting achievable reductions in preventable deaths.Methods: The PROLONGER (ImPROved LONGEvity through Reductions in Cause-Specific Deaths) tool utilizes a novel Lives Saved Simulation model to estimate neighborhood-level potential change in LE after specified reduction in cause-specific mortality. This analysis uses 2012–2016 deaths in Baltimore City residents; a 20% reduction in heart disease mortality is shown as a case study.Results: According to PROLONGER, if heart disease deaths could be reduced by 20% in a given neighborhood in Baltimore City, there could be up to a 2.3-year increase in neighborhood LE. The neighborhoods with highest expected LE increase are not the same as those with highest heart disease mortality burden or lowest overall life expectancies.Discussion: PROLONGER is a practical resource for local health officials in prioritizing scarce resources to improve health outcomes. Focusing programs based on potential LE impact at the neighborhood level could lend new information for targeting of place-based public health interventions.

scholarly journals Smart Management of Healthcare Professionals Involved in COVID-19 Contrast With SWAPS

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Bellavista ◽  
Marco Torello ◽  
Antonio Corradi ◽  
Luca Foschini
Keyword(s):  
Health Department ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Healthcare Personnel ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Regional Health ◽  
Positive Health ◽  
Risk Area ◽  
Healthcare Facilities ◽  
Infected People ◽  
The University

The recent COVID-19 pandemic in Italy has highlighted several critical issues in the management process of infected people. At the health level, the management of the COVID-19 positive was mainly delegated to the regional authorities and centrally monitored by the State. Despite requested common activities (such as diagnosis of virus positivity, active surveillance of infected people and contact tracing), Regional Health Departments were able to issue specific directives in their territories and establish priority levels for each activity according to the specific needs related to the emergency in their area. The development of novel digital tools for the management of infected people become an urgent necessity to foster more organized and integrated solutions, able to quickly process large amounts of data. Mobile Crowdsensing methodologies could effectively facilitate needed lateral interviewing activities as well as the monitoring of crowds in environments with a high concentration of virus-positive subjects (such are hospital wards but also other locations), facilitating the tracing of possible outbreaks of contagion due to advanced geolocation techniques and big data analysis methods. This paper analyzes the functionality of SWAPS (Supporting Workflows for Healthcare Personnel management), a modular and scalable web platform which facilitate and reduces the management time of COVID positive health personnel within healthcare facilities. It also analyzes the possible integrations between SWAPS and ParticipACT, an advanced MCS platform developed by the University of Bologna that can help set up the alert notification in case of entry into a COVID risk area. This article surveys the current literature on software platforms to address COVID-19 and related tracing issues and presents the practical issues and on-the-field results obtained from the research developed by the University of Bologna by assisting the deployment of the proposed solution for a big Regional Health Department in the city of Bologna.

Effect of local health department leadership on community overdose prevention coalitions

2017 ◽  
Vol 171 ◽  
pp. e5-e6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Apostolos Alexander Alexandridis ◽  
Nabarun Dasgupta ◽  
Christopher Ringwalt ◽  
Catherine Sanford ◽  
Agnieszka McCort
Keyword(s):  
Health Department ◽  
Local Health Department ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Overdose Prevention

The Role of EMS Systems in Public Health Emergencies

1997 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara A. McIntosh ◽  
Patricia Hinds ◽  
Lorraine M. Giordano
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Department ◽  
Definitive Treatment ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Public Health Response ◽  
Pneumonic Plague ◽  
Notification System ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Health Emergencies ◽  
Isolation Facilities

AbstractIntroduction:Until now, the public health response to the threat of an epidemic has involved coordination of efforts between federal agencies, local health departments, and individual hospitals, with no defined role for prehospital emergency medical services (EMS) providers.Methods:Representatives from the local health department, hospital consortium, and prehospital EMS providers developed an interim plan for dealing with an epidemic alert. The plan allowed for the prehospital use of appropriate isolation procedures, prophylaxis of personnel, and predesignation of receiving hospitals for patients suspected of having infection. Additionally, a dual notification system utilizing an EMS physician and a representative from the Office of Infectious Diseases from the hospital group was implemented to ensure that all potential cases were captured. Initially, the plan was employed only for those cases arising from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCJ/Public Health Service (PHS) quarantine unit at the airport, but its use later was expanded to include all potential cases within the 9–1–1 system.Results:In the two test situations in which it was employed, the plan incorporating the prehospital EMS sector worked well and extended the “surveillance net” further into the community. During the Pneumonic Plague alert, EMS responded to the quarantine facilities at the airport five times and transported two patients to isolation facilities. Two additional patients were identified and transported to isolation facilities from calls within the 9–1–1 system. In all four isolated cases, Pneumonic Plague was ruled out. During the Ebola alert, no potential cases were identified.Conclusion:The incorporation of the prehospital sector into an already existing framework for public health emergencies (i.e., epidemics), enhances the reach of the public safety surveillance net and ensure that proper isolation is continued from identification of a possible case to arrival at a definitive treatment facility.

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