HAP Blog

While we’ve always been able to count on our flu strategies, here comes the curveball. COVID-19 has changed the landscape for infectious disease planning, mitigation, and response. Interest in public health is at an all-time high as people seek out information to make health decisions from reliable and not-so-reliable sources. This winter, hospitals could face a potential flu epidemic on top of their COVID-19 caseloads.

A simple fact that’s true for all emergency managers: how we use our time between emergencies determines our success during the next one.

Emergency Management, just as other professional jobs in the U.S., is experiencing resource and talent shortages. The perceived value of emergency management has never been higher, which may be adding to the potential resource shortage as is the fact that many facilities are looking to build new or augment existing capabilities. 

We’re always thinking about the worst-case scenarios, whether it’s the generator system that won’t come back online or the wildfire that’s creeping closer to our facility. Part of our job as emergency management professionals is to prepare for situations we hope never come to pass. 

When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived last year, I remember my phone ringing off the hook as hospital leaders asked a simple question.

“How will we secure our supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) amid an unprecedented wave of global demand?”