Public Health Practices

Educational resources are available in more than 20 languages, including Bosnian, Burmese, Farsi, Korean, Punjabi, Romanian, Swahili, Tagalog, Tigrigna, and Ukrainian.

Following the first wave of H1N1, the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (NH DHHS) formed six planning groups to prepare for a second wave of the pandemic in fall 2009. These planning groups addressed essential target capabilities: surveillance and laboratory, clinical guidance, medical surge, continuity of operations, risk communication, and countermeasure administration.

Hawaii's existing school surveillance alerted health officials of changing disease patterns early during the outbreak. This, combined with its established school-located vaccination clinics, significantly aided its H1N1 response effort.

Fact sheets and resources from the Connecticut Department of Public Health provide basic information about H1N1 influenza in multiple languages. A fact sheet answers many frequently asked questions, including questions about influenza transmission, prevention, symptoms, and treatment. The fact sheet links to other documents, including documents that focus on preventing and containing influenza in children.

The Closed Dispensing Site Workbook is designed to help community organizations become closed dispensing sites to administer medication to their staff and/or clients during an emergency. The workbook is an alternative to traditional prophylaxis dispensing site and is intended to disburse preventive medication to an entire population within 48 hours.

New Hanover County, North Carolina, built and maintained a voluntary special needs emergency registry through their Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP). The registry was initiated in 1997 and housed under the Department of Emergency Management until 2003, when grant funds became available to support maintenance of a registry by RSVP.

A fotonovela developed by North Carolina Division of Public Health teaches Spanish-reading individuals about pandemic influenza (gripe pandemica). A fotonovela is a comic-style novel that uses photos instead of illustrations, and the Gripe Pandemica Fotonovela tells a brief story about personal preparedness in Spanish. The story and pictures feature a boy who is telling his parents about the pandemic flu preparedness information he has learned in school.

A basic but complete overview of seasonal and pandemic issues focuses on education, basic prevention, and personal preparedness. The materials are simple, clearly branded, consistent, and pre-packaged into user-friendly campaign materials. A press release, fliers, and other materials allow others to conduct educational presentations. Use of the governor in a public service announcement helps to emphasize the importance of the message.