Pandemic Planning and Emergency Response

This page is an index of ACHA and other resources on this topic. Resources include association projects, programs, publications, guidelines, and more. Additional information may be available under “External Resources.”

ACHA Resources

Emerging Public Health Threats and Emergency Response Coalition
This coalition provides multidisciplinary, multiregional education, advocacy, and research on emerging public health threats and emergency response.

Emergency Planning Guidelines for Campus Health Services: An All-Hazards Approach
The purpose of these guidelines is to prompt college health professionals to action in either leading or assisting in the development of pandemic preparedness plans on their campus.

ACHA Pandemic Influenza Surveillance
The ACHA Pandemic Influenza Surveillance Project was conducted from August 21, 2009, through April 30, 2010, to better understand pandemic influenza activity on college campuses.

ACHA Task Force for Pandemic Planning Response to DHHS [pdf]
January 2007 response to the Department of Health and Human Services' allocation of scarce supplies of influenza vaccine and related issues.

Ebola Campus Preparedness Considerations: A Live Briefing (A joint collaboration between ACHA and NASPA) 
Presented on October 28, 2014
Presenters: Sarah Van Orman, MD, MMM (University of Wisconsin-Madison); Craig Roberts, MS, PA-C (University of Wisconsin-Madison); and Joanne Vogel, PhD (Southern Methodist University)

While the risk of Ebola is very low within the general U.S. population and on college campuses, institutions of higher education are developing plans to ensure they are well prepared for a potential case. This careful preparation can mitigate the risk a case may present to the campus community. Timely and accurate communications can reduce community concerns. This presentation provides an overview of Ebola preparedness for senior student affairs and campus health leaders. Considerations discussed include communications, international travel, screening of travelers, and incident management structures.

Downloads:
Presentation slides in Adobe Acrobat format [pdf]
Recorded Webinar [mp4]

External Resources

ACHA thanks its committee, coalition, task force, and section volunteers for providing resources and links concerning this topic. ACHA does not endorse or accept responsibility for the content or use of external websites.

Action Guide for Emergency Management at Institutions of Higher Education [pdf]
This U.S. Department of Education Action Guide, revised in 2010, offers higher education institutions a useful resource in the field of emergency management.

Addressing Emergencies on Campus [pdf]
This resource from the U.S. Department of Education Family Policy Compliance Office offers guidance to school officials who may be reassessing their campus safety policies by offering a summary of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), as well as pertinent provisions of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) that apply to postsecondary institutions. Information about protecting parents and students’ privacy rights, threat assessment teams, and HEA disclosure requirements concerning campus are covered.

Balancing Student Privacy and School Safety: A Guide to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act for Colleges/Universities 
This U.S. Department of Education brochure provides higher education officials with guidance about balancing student privacy and safety in the context of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Specifically, this document describes the circumstances under which school officials are permitted to disclose education records without written student consent to maintain campus safety.

CDC Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) 
COCA prepares clinicians to respond to emerging health threats and public health emergencies by communicating relevant, timely information related to disease outbreaks, disasters, terrorism events, and other health alerts.

CDC Ebola Guidance

CDC Emergency Preparedness and Response

CDC Health Alert Network 
CDC's Health Alert Network (HAN) is CDC's primary method of sharing cleared information about urgent public health incidents with public information officers; federal, state, territorial, and local public health practitioners; clinicians; and public health laboratories.

CDC Influenza Information and Guidance (includes seasonal flu and other types)

CDC Preparedness Resources for Schools

CDC Travel Guidance

Flu.gov
Provides comprehensive government-wide information on pandemic influenza and avian influenza for the general public, health and emergency preparedness professionals, policy makers, government and business leaders, school systems, and local communities.

DRU Listserv 
For university and/or college emergent professionals; hosted by the University of Oregon Emergency Management Program.

Federal Emergency Planning Agency (FEMA) Resources for Universities

Preparing for the Flu: A Communication Toolkit for Institutions of Higher Education [pdf]
This CDC toolkit provides information and communication resources to help students, faculty, and staff implement recommendations from CDC’s Guidance for Responses to Influenza for Institutions of Higher Education during the 2009-2010 Academic Year.

World Health Organization Global Alert and Response