Model Communities Link EMS and Public Health

Each year, CDC’s TIIDE (Terrorism Injuries: Information, Dissemination and Exchange) partners identify communities that serve as a model of how emergency medical services can work with other safety and public health agencies in times of disaster. During a crisis, local hospitals, emergency departments and first responders play a vital role on the front lines of emergency care. The role of public health is also critical and the model community program is one way to identify communities where there are strong public health and medical partnerships working together to respond to large-scale crisis.

TIIDE Project

Constructed around the interrelated activities of partnership building, learning lessons from previous terrorist events, and disseminating information, the TIIDE Project was created to address the urgent need to develop and exchange information about injuries from terrorism. That information includes community strategies to improve public safety, public health, clinical management and healthcare system preparedness in the event of mass casualty incidents.

Model Communities

Selected communities and their web sites are:

2008 Model Communities

• Orlando, Florida
• Minneapolis/St Paul, Minnesota
• Indiana County, Pennsylvania
• Aurora, Colorado, Danbury
• Connecticut, Southern New Jersey
• Kalamazoo, Michigan

2007 Model Communities

• Chouteau County, Montana
• Palm Beach County HERC, Florida
• Pinellas County, Florida
• San Diego County, California
• Southeast Region 7 WHEPP, Wisconsin

2006 Model Communities

• Boston, Massachusetts
• Eau Claire County, Wisconsin
• Erie County, New York
• Livingston County, New York
• Louisville, Kentucky
• Monroe County, New York
• Southern Nevada Health District, Nevada

Each of the selected communities has been successful in strengthening the relationship and collaboration between public health and the emergency care community to improve daily operations and disaster preparedness for their communities. Many of these communities share common features including:

• Strong medical oversight on both public health and emergency care;
• A desire and an effort to educate both emergency care and public health providers about each others' role;
• Recognition of the role of and a commitment to developing and maintaining relationships between leadership through regular meetings, teambuilding exercises, and planning;
• Bringing community stakeholders (businesses, clinics, universities, etc.), into planning process;
• Creating disaster plans that were developed locally, involve public health and emergency care, and that are repeatedly drilled; and
• Aggressively pursuing and securing funding.

More information

• Email questions and comments about CDC's TIIDE Project to cdcinfo@cdc.gov
• See Emergency Preparedness and Planning
• See Injury Fact Sheets for the public, health professionals, clinicians, and EMS providers