COCA Email Updates: January 28 – February 11, 2013

COCA News and Announcements

Upcoming COCA Call/Webinar:

Emergency Preparedness: Understanding Physicians’ Concerns and Readiness to Respond
Date: Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Time: 2:00 - 3:00 pm (Eastern Time)
Call Number: 888-233-9077
Passcode: 5070816
Webinar: https://www.mymeetings.com/nc/join.php?i=PW4267068&p=5070816&t=c
During this COCA call, a Harvard School of Public Health researcher will share findings from their physician preparedness poll, and representatives from two professional associations will discuss policy, practice, and operational tools and resources to assist physicians in All-Hazard emergency preparedness.

Recent COCA Call/Webinar:

Evaluating and Responding to Chemical Emergencies: The Role of Poison Control Centers and Public Health Labs
Date: Thursday, January 31, 2013
During this COCA call, subject matter experts discussed biomedical testing for chemical agents, state level poison control center practices, and clinical resources for chemical emergencies.

Stopping Norovirus in its Tracks – What Every Clinician Should Know
Date: Thursday, January 17, 2013
During this COCA call, a CDC subject matter expert discussed the burden of norovirus outbreaks, reviewed diagnostics and surveillance tools, and shared resources to promote the prevention and control of norovirus infections.

Additional archived COCA Conference Calls
Free CE credit/contact hours (CME, CNE, ACPE, CEU, CECH, and AAVSB/RACE) are available for most COCA calls.

CDC News and Announcements

NEW: CDC Expert Commentary Video: Critical Gaps in Emergency Preparedness: Getting Physicians Up to Speed – February 11 (CDC)
As part of the CDC Expert Commentary Series on Medscape, Dr. Gillian SteelFisher, Assistant Director of the Harvard Opinion Research Program at the Harvard School of Public Health tells you about the results of a recent poll conducted that examined physicians' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to preparing for and responding to a public health emergency. Click on the link below for the upcoming physician emergency preparedness COCA call and scroll down for the CDC Medscape Commentary video.

Upcoming Call/Webinar: Saving Lives with Words: What Health Educators Need to Know About Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication
Date: February 26, 2013
Time: 1:00 - 2:00 pm (Eastern Time)
CDC’s Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC) manual was first published in 2002 to provide an experience and skills-based approach to health communications during emergencies. In 2012, the manual was updated and revised, including a new chapter on social media. This presentation will review the main principles of CERC, highlight the updates to the material, and explore ways in which health educators in a variety of roles can use CERC principles in their work.

CDC Science Clips: Volume 5, Issue: 5 – (CDC)
Each week select science clips are shared with the public health community to enhance awareness of emerging scientific knowledge. The focus is applied public health research and prevention science that has the capacity to improve health now.

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Public Health Preparedness

NEW: Disaster Response Template Toolkit: Introduction – (SAMHSA)
This Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Disaster Response Template Toolkit features public education materials that disaster behavioral health response programs can use to create resources for reaching people affected by a disaster. The Template Toolkit includes print, website, audio, video, and multimedia materials that disaster behavioral health response programs can use to provide outreach, psycho-education, and recovery news for disaster survivors.

NEW: Public Health Matters Blog: Over 2.7 Million to Participate in the Great Central U.S. ShakeOut – February 6 (CDC)
Thursday, February 7, 2013, at 10:15 AM (CST), over 2.7 million people in the Central U.S. participated in the Great Central U.S. ShakeOut, the region’s largest earthquake drill. Communities throughout Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee participated in this event.

Emergency Preparedness and Response – (CDC)
Find resources for All Hazards and Specific Hazards preparedness.

Emergency Preparedness and Response Training Resources for Clinicians – (CDC)
A resource for scheduled and on-demand emergency preparedness and response trainings offered by federal agencies and COCA partners.

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Natural Disasters and Severe Weather

Extreme Cold: Winter Weather: Frostbite – (CDC)
Frostbite is an injury to the body that is caused by freezing. Frostbite causes a loss of feeling and color in affected areas. It most often affects the nose, ears, cheeks, chin, fingers, or toes. Frostbite can permanently damage the body, and severe cases can lead to amputation. The risk of frostbite is increased in people with reduced blood circulation and among people who are not dressed properly for extremely cold temperatures.

Health and Safety Concerns for All Disasters – (CDC)

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Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

MMWR publications are prepared by the CDC. To electronically subscribe, go to http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/mmwrsubscribe.html

February 8, 2013 / Vol. 62 / No. 5 Download .pdf document of this issue

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Infectious, Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases

Weekly Flu View – January 19 (CDC)
This is a weekly influenza surveillance report prepared by CDC Influenza Division. All data are preliminary and may change as CDC receives more reports.

Planning and Preparedness: Health Professionals and Seasonal Flu – (HHS)
Health care providers play an important role during flu season. The following guidance and information will assist health care providers and service organizations to plan and respond to seasonal flu.

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Travel Safety

Current Travel Warnings – February 8 (US Department of State)
Travel Warnings are issued when long-term, protracted conditions that make a country dangerous or unstable lead the State Department to recommend that Americans avoid or consider the risk of travel to that country. A Travel Warning is also issued when the U.S. Government's ability to assist American citizens is constrained due to the closure of an embassy or consulate or because of a drawdown of its staff.

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Food, Drug and Device Safety

CDC releases first estimates of the food sources of all foodborne illnesses acquired in the United States
The paper provides a historical baseline of estimates that will be further refined over time with more data and improved methods. It builds on the estimates of foodborne illness published in 2011 that told us that about 48 million people (1 in 6) get sick each year from food. More than 9 million of these illnesses are caused by major pathogens CDC tracks.

Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium Infections Linked to Ground Beef
A total of 16 persons infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Typhimurium have been reported from 5 states. Collaborative investigative efforts of state, local, and federal public health and regulatory agencies indicated that ground beef produced by Jouni Meats, Inc. and Gab Halal Foods are likely sources of this outbreak.

MedWatch: The FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program – (HHS/USFDA)
Your FDA gateway for clinically important safety information and reporting serious problems with human medical products.

FoodSafety.gov Reports FDA and USDA Food Recalls, Alerts, Reporting & Resources – (HHS/UDSA/FDA/CDC/NIH)
For recalls and alerts by both FDA and USDA, or to report a problem or make inquiries.

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