In our recent history, national catastrophic events such as the 9/11 attacks, anthrax letters, Hurricane Katrina, and the threat of pandemic influenza led to an entirely new era in public health emergency preparedness. Policy makers from across the nation saw the need to further integrate public health into the emergency management, first responder, and health [...]
Our Health Emergency Operations Center activated last week as part of the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station annual emergency drill. Federal regulations mandate Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station and its emergency response partners conduct regular preparedness drills and exercises. During a public health emergency, the Health Emergency Operations Center activates to support state emergency management [...]
Arizona’s public health and healthcare system teamed up with the ADHS including our Bureau of Public Health Emergency Preparedness and the Arizona Division of Emergency Management last week in one of the largest preparedness exercises of the year. The objective was to test and build preparedness capabilities across the emergency management system in AZ. More than 3,000 [...]
With one of the worst wildfire tragedies in history happening last weekend, our Health Emergency Operations Center was active all week. First making sure that there was enough behavioral health support through the Regional Behavioral Health Authorities, then helping provide some specific assistance to the shelters in Prescott and Wickenburg. On Tuesday, we pulled special beds [...]
