Thanks to Urgent Communications for leading us to this flow diagram, produced by the CDC, which outlines steps to take when receiving a call from someone who thinks they have Ebola.
It looks very helpful, but – despite the use of the word “inform” – we don’t see much about what information, if any, to give to either the folks living in the area of the suspected patient or the general public.
Since PSAPs are often the primary users of emergency notification systems and since these systems are sometimes used to alert the public of infectious diseases, we’re wondering if it’s time to develop protocols for when and how to alert the public in the case of infectious diseases.
The question is much broader than Ebola. Here in Charlotte, NC, we’ve had two cases of food service workers with hepatitis that could have spread to the general public. And the recent outbreak of measles is another case. We’re pretty sure there are many more. And we’re also sure that the protocols to follow will vary with the nature of the disease and how it spreads.
Emergency alert systems such as Hyper-Reach now cover at least 80% of the US population, mostly at the county level. At the rate they are growing, it won’t be long before they reach almost the entirety of the US. But despite that coverage, there isn’t much of a literature on best practices or established protocols for their use. We think it’s time to develop one.
