Emergency Preparedness

Wildfires, earthquakes and floods strike communities every year. Southeast Utah is at risk for all of these types of disasters. Do you have water, food, clothing, more than one way to communicate with others, and understanding your neighborhood and how your neighbors can help each other. Be ready before help arrives.

Community Preparedness

In 2011, CDC established 15 capabilities that serve as national standards for public health preparedness planning. Since then, these capability standards have served as a vital framework for state, local, tribal, and territorial preparedness programs as they plan, operationalize, and evaluate their ability to prepare for, respond to, and recover from public health emergencies.

Of these capabilities. Capability 8: Medical Countermeasure Dispensing and Administration This capability falls under the Public Health Emergency Program and is described as Medical countermeasure dispensing and administration is the ability to provide medical countermeasures to targeted population(s) to prevent, mitigate, or treat the adverse health effects of a public health incident. This capability focuses on dispensing and administering medical countermeasures, such as vaccines, antiviral drugs, antibiotics, and antitoxins.

What We Do

Promote awareness and access to public health, healthcare, human services, mental/behavioral health and environmental health resources that help protect the communities health and address the access and functional needs of at risk individuals.
Engage in preparedness activities that address the access of functional needs of the whole community as well as cultural, socioeconomic and demographic factors
Plan to address the health needs of populations that have been displaced because of incidence that have occurred in their own or distant communities such as after a radiological, nuclear or natural disaster.
Support the development of public health, healthcare, human services, mental/behavioral health and environmental health systems that support community preparedness.

What You Can Do

Maintain Go-Packs (72 hour kits) for each individual in your home
Maintain water storage for your family, the recommended amount is one gallon of water, per person, per day. We recommend to have at least 3 days worth.
Keep important documents (Birth Certificates, Bank information, Social Security Cards) in a safe and easily accessible location
Have a meeting point for your family where everybody can easily find
Check your smoke & carbon monoxide alarms twice a year
Volunteer with CERT & MRC (see below)
See more ways to plan at https://www.ready.gov/plan
Download the FEMA app to receive local emergency announcements https://www.fema.gov/mobile-app

Hospital Preparedness

Healthcare

Preparedness

In the summer of 2010 funding was made available to the Southeast Utah Health Department (SEUHD) for the coordination and development of a hospital and healthcare partnership/coalition. This development was to help aid the healthcare system in the southeast region in the event of a disaster. This would give healthcare systems and other emergency response partners an opportunity to coordinate the efficient use of resources and to participate in strengthening community and regional healthcare system emergency response and surge capability and capacity. However, medical surge planning on a regional level is an important preparedness issue that has not yet been fully addressed on a regional basis in the Southeast region of Utah. The creation of a regional healthcare coalition provides a mechanism by which collaboration and coordination can be facilitated and accomplished in Southeast Utah. Through federal grant funding from the Utah Department of Health and the working efforts of all coalition members, a strategic regional medical surge management plan can be developed and made operational throughout this geographic area.

How do we prepare?

Assessment of Regional Health Care Resources.
Assessment of Community Planning for Children, Pregnant Women, Seniors, Individuals with Access and Functional Needs People with Disabilities, and Others with Unique Needs.
Promote the Value of Health Care and Medical Readiness.
Educate and Train on Identified Preparedness and Response Gaps.
Evaluate Exercises and Responses to Emergencies.
Assess and Address Equipment, Supply, and Pharmaceutical Requirements
Train and Exercise to Promote Responders’ Safety and Health.

Medical Reserve Corps

Mission of Southeastern Utah Medical Reserve Corps (SEUMRC)

“to recruit, train, and coordinate volunteer medical and public health professionals as well as other skilled citizens who can contribute their time and expertise during emergencies, disasters, and other times of community need.”

In 2005 medical reserve corps began to develop within the public health departments throughout the state. So far there are 13 medical reserve corps in the state of Utah and over 700 throughout the nation. The SEUDHD acquired a federal grant and SEUMRC was organized in April 2006. SEUMRC is developing and increasing its capability to coordinate volunteers.

The Medical Reserve Corps is the component of the Citizen Corps that will bring together local health professionals, community volunteers to provide support services and others with relevant skills. The Southeastern Utah Medical Reserve Corps (SEUMRC) volunteers will assist local existing community emergency medical response systems as well as deal with pressing public health needs and improvements.

To volunteer please fill out the registration form below or contact Zack Wise at the Southeast Utah Health Department for more information at zackwise@utah.gov or 435-637-3671.

Volunteers can opt to work just during emergencies and disasters or they could choose to

address ongoing community needs as well.

Volunteers also choose where they want to serve. They have the option to serve just their

County, or their health district, the state, or the nation if the need arises.