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CDC issues new H1N1 flu guidelines for higher education

The Centers for Disease and Control has released new H1N1 flu guidelines for institutions of higher education. From the preface:

This document provides guidance to help decrease the spread of flu among students, faculty, and staff of institutions of higher education (IHE) and post-secondary educational institutions during the 2009-2010 academic year. The guidance expands upon earlier guidance for these settings by providing a menu of tools that IHE and health officials can choose from based on conditions in their area. It recommends actions to take now (during this academic year), suggests strategies to consider if the flu starts causing more severe disease than during the spring/summer 2009 H1N1 outbreak, and provides a checklist for making decisions. Detailed information on the reasons for these strategies and suggestions on how to use them is included in the Technical Report. Based on the severity of 2009 H1N1 flu-related illness thus far, this guidance also recommends that students, faculty, and staff with flu-like illness remain home until 24 hours after resolution of fever without the use of fever-reducing medications.

• View the guidelines

New report: 'Effective Emergency Management: Making Improvements for Communities and People with Disabilities'

The National Council on Disability issued a new report, "Effective Emergency Management: Making Improvements for Communities and People with Disabilities."

"In this report, NCD offers information and advice to assist all levels of government in its work to establish evidence-based policies, programs, and practices across the life cycle of disasters. This report provides examples of effective community efforts with respect to people with disabilities, and evaluates many emergency preparedness, disaster relief, and homeland security program efforts deployed by both public and private sectors. Our recommendations are based on scientific research and thorough review of policies and practices that have been tested in emergencies of all types throughout the country. It is our expectation that this report will promote a focused dialogue and communicate critical information to be used by those charged with protecting our nation's most vulnerable populations."

Download the report as a PDF.

Federal agencies issue new employer guidelines for coming H1N1 flu season

Department of Commerce (DOC) Secretary Gary Locke, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano this week announced new guidance for businesses to plan for and respond to the upcoming flu season.

The guidance, released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is designed to help employers prepare now for the impact of seasonal and 2009 H1N1 influenza could have this fall and winter on their employers and operations.

• Read the news release
• View new CDC guidance

New Rand report: 'National Agenda for Public Health Systems Research on Emergency Preparedness'

Rand has issued a new report, "National Agenda for Public Health Systems Research on Emergency Preparedness." From the preface:

"The lack of frequent opportunities to observe and learn from real-world responses to large-scale public health emergencies has hindered the development of an evidence base for public health emergency preparedness. As a result, efforts to develop performance measures and standards, best practices, program guidance, training, and other tools have proceeded without a strong empirical and analytical basis. To help identify strategies for addressing this gap in evidence, this report presents the findings from an expert panel convened to develop a broad public health systems research agenda for emergency preparedness. The report will be of interest to federal, state, local, and tribal health officials, as well as a range of funders and research institutions at all levels. This document will help to support decisions about short- and long-term research priorities and provide a basis for coordinating the efforts of funders and researchers inside and outside the federal government. This work was prepared for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR). This research was conducted within the RAND Health Center for Public Health Preparedness."

Download the report as a PDF.

Commentary: 'What Have We Learned?'

In the final edition of "Just a Minute for Homeland Security" (a weekly public radio commentary produced by the Integrative Center for Homeland Security at Texas A&M University and KAMU 90.9 FM), Dr. Dave McIntyre, director of the Integrative Center for Homeland Security at Texas A&M, says:

"On August 18th, 2005, we broadcast the first Just a Minute for Homeland Security. It was an educational commentary on the terrorist bombing of the London subway.  Two hundred and seven shows later, this is our last program. Since each show is actually three minutes long, what did we learn from more than 10 hours of radio?"

• Listen to the show.

• Read the transcript.

Subscribe to the weekly podcast:

• To get the podcast as an email, click here.
• To get the podcast with iTunes, click here.
• To get the podcast with an RSS newsreader, click here.

"On August 18th, 2005, we broadcast the first Just a Minute for Homeland Security. It was an educational commentary on the terrorist bombing of the London subway.  Two hundred and seven shows later, this is our last program. Since each show is actually three minutes long, what did we learn from more than 10 hours of radio?"

• Listen to the show.

• Read the transcript.

Subscribe to the weekly podcast:

• To get the podcast as an email, click here.
• To get the podcast with iTunes, click here.
• To get the podcast with an RSS newsreader, click here.

Final show: After 900-plus interviews, what have we learned?

Tuesday, Aug. 11

• 7 p.m. Central on KAMU 90.9 FM

Thursday, Aug 13

• Noon Eastern on WFED 1500 AM (with an encore at 9 p.m. Eastern on Sunday, Aug. 2)

Click here to listen to the podcast of final show (August 11/13 2009)

Download the news release

Guests include:

• Spencer Hsu, a reporter for the Washington Post, on the transition of DHS from Bush to Obama.
• Adm. James Loy, former deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, who says the "new" DHS is on the right track.
• Jean Meserve, homeland security reporter for CNN, who says the nation has lost its sense of urgency on homeland security.
• James Jay Carafano of the Heritage Foundation, who says U.S. counterterrorism is a victim of its own success.
• Alan Cohen, deputy assistant secretary for policy and strategic plans at the Department of Homeland Security, on the upcoming DHS quadrennialreview
• Final thoughts about homeland security and the show's legacy with co-hosts Dave McIntyre and Randy Larsen.
• Looking back at the show's history with Penny Zent, station manager for KAMU 90.9 FM in College Station, and Ed Hadden, producer of "Homeland Security: Inside & Out."

New video from the Bring It Home Channel: 'Campus Relations and Emergencies'

Traditionally, one of the safest places to be in the United States is a college campus. But is that changing? In this interview, we get answers from Anna Satterfield, associate director for human resources.

Visit the "Bring It Home" channel on YouTube. This series of videos is produced by KAMU-TV at Texas A&M University in College Station.

Executive director of EMP Commission submits testimony to House committee

Dr. Michael J. Frankel, executive director of the EMP Commission, recently submitted testimony to the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee concerning threats to the nation's power grid and to cyber security.

• Download the testimony as a four-page PDF.

New report: 'Strategic Risk Management in Government: A Look at Homeland Security'

The IBM Center for the Business of Government has published a report by the directors of  The Institute for Homeland Security Solutions, David H. Schanzer and Joe Eyerman, entitled "Strategic Risk Management in Government: A Look at Homeland Security."

The report describes the recent history of strategic risk management in the Department of Homeland Security and set forth a series of findings and recommendations directed to the Executive Office of the President, the Department, and Congress.

To download the report, click here.