Background
Any number of public health emergencies could occur in the Kansas City ranging from natural disease outbreaks to deliberate acts of terrorism involving the use of biological agents.

The Public Health Emergency Preparedness Program plans for and responds to such events. Program staff consists of two emergency response planners, three epidemiology specialists, a risk communications officer, a volunteer coordinator and support staff. The program is directed by the CDP division manager.

It is not enough to write plans to address public health concerns. The Program works with the department’s medical and administrative staff to develop and exercise these response capabilities.

In the event of a serious occurrence of a communicable disease, the City must be prepared to execute functions not normally required during events normally planned for by other disciplines such as law enforcement and fire service. These include disease surveillance and investigation, mass prophylaxis for those exposed, isolation and quarantine, mass patient care and even mass fatalities.

By activating the Communicable Disease Outbreak and Bioterrorism plan for events as simple as conducting flu clinics for the citizens of Kansas City, the Emergency Preparedness staff has an opportunity to learn what works and doesn’t work during low stress incidents. Following Hurricane Katrina, the Health Department assisted evacuees by offering immunizations and activating the Medical Reserve Corps to provide medical assessments and referrals. These are all components of the plan and lessons learned from the partial activation will be translated into revisions to the plan.

Our Role
It is important to remember that many disciplines will have a role in events as serious as a bioterrorism event and that it will not be contained within the city limits of Kansas City; nor will any communicable disease outbreak.

Emergency Preparedness staff maintains ongoing working relationships with public health agencies in neighboring jurisdictions and other government agencies. They participates in several committees and subcommittees that meet at least monthly to plan and coordinate responses to public health emergencies. An example is the Regional Homeland Security Coordination Committee and its numerous subcommittees. This group provides bi-state multi-disciplinary and multi-jurisdictional support, leadership and coordination, and maximizes public and private resources.

Community Partnerships
Another vital function of the Program is the development of community partnerships with the private sector to enhance the department’s ability to respond to large-scale events. The Kansas City Cross-Jurisdictional Partnership is an evolving group of public health directors, technical experts, private sector health insurance plans and businesses. The group’s primary purpose is to improve preparedness collaboration between local public health agencies, private health insurance plans and employers in a large, multi-jurisdictional community that crosses state boundaries.

Through these and countless other activities, the Program strives to ensure the health and safety of the citizens and visitors of the city. Plans evolve to meet the increasing challenges of these changing times.

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