Friday, March 19, 2004

         This Week in the News

Foege, WH., et al., 
International Journal of Epidemiology
1976; 5:29-37

A R T I C L E S

Methods:
An epi / immunization team of three nurses and the PBCHD emergency preparedness coordinator boarded the ship at 8:00 a.m. after obtaining clearance from port security. The shipping company had ensure that no one left the ship prior to the team’s medical assessment. The captain provided the ship’s manifest, verifying that 18 men, including the two contacts from the Philippine-California flight, were onboard and were available to be interviewed and/or immunized as needed. The interviews and immunizations were conducted, in private, in the main office and the infirmary. The designated areas were small, but provided a somewhat comfortable environment for those with anxiety to needles and obvious language barriers. All 18 crewmembers, including the captain, stated that they had no symptoms of illness. All 18 were uncertain regarding previous history of measles or measles vaccination and all consented to be immunized with MMR. The team distributed measles fact sheets, completed the necessary paperwork and immunized the crew by 10:00 a.m. The crew was cooperative and courteous despite the interruption to their cargo offloading operations. As the team finished, a new crewmember arrived to begin work, but had not yet boarded the ship. He was immunized at dockside after education and paperwork were completed. Follow up communication regarding the entire operation was sent to the CDC and DOH. 

Results:
The team viewed its efforts in measles surveillance as valuable preparation for all future emergency events. The emergency preparedness coordinator contacted a designated local hospital’s infection control department regarding the status of their memorandum of understanding (MOU) with CDC’s Division of Global Migration and Quarantine. If needed, patients could have been admitted to the hospital, with appropriate isolation initiated. In the event of any future emergency situation, the MOU is now in place. The nurses verified that their emergency operation bags contained the needed supplies for an effective outreach. The packed supplies were found to be sufficient and necessary for this event and therefore satisfactory for most future emergency situations. 
 

In addition to the poster session, there will be several new activities added to the program this year. The evening of May 17^th there will be a dessert reception and opportunity to pre-register for the first day, as well as a “County Showcasing” which will provide county health departments the opportunity to bring resources they have developed for healthcare professionals and share them with other county health departments. These items will be on display throughout the seminar. If your conty would like to participate in this event, please contact Melanie Black.

The poster session and reception will be held the evening of May 18th. The event will be judged again this year with awards given to the best infectious disease poster, as well as the best presentation by a Florida EIS fellow, the best chronic disease poster and, finally, the best county health department display. The winners will be announced at the following day's luncheon. Another added feature to this year's program will be the "Golden Partnership" awards, which will be presented to the county health departments who made significant contributtions to public health this past year in the area if disease control and surveillance.

To take advantage of our special group rate, be sure to make your hotel reservations early. Call the Marriott directly at 407.995.1100 or reserve through their dedicated reservation line at 800.228-9290. Refer the booking agent to the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Epidemiology Seminar to receive the group rate. You can also reserve accommodations through the hotel website at www.marriott.com/MCOML. Click on the red button labeled Reserve a Room, enter the dates, and then scroll down to the box labeled “Group Code.” Enter FBEFBEA to receive the group rate and follow the instructions to complete the arrangement. 

For further information, contact Melanie Black at the Bureau of Epidemiology in Tallahassee at 850.245.4444, ext. 2448.
 

Meet Susan Pearson, a grants specialist who arrived at the Bureau of Epidemiology less than a year ago. Susan migrated north gradually from Venice to Sarasota and finally settled in Tallahassee, captured by its moderate climate and family-friendly atmosphere. When she's not working, she likes to explore white water rafting whenever possible, and occasionally assists her husband in his taxidermy business.

Although Susan had background in governmental purchasing and contract management procedures, it is her organizational and writing skills that play the important role in the preparation and administration of the grants under her purview. As she conducts research to identify new grant opportunities, she also tracks progress of current packages, develops strategic approaches to her initial applications, and tracks budget expenditures for the grants she manages.

►Bi-weekly CHD Conference Call News

These bi-weekly calls are conducted on alternate Fridays from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. and can be accessed by calling 1.800.351.6803. The security code is 69698. This call took place on March 12th, 2004.

Announcements. Don Ward reported the Emerging Infectious Diseases conference in Atlanta provided a plethora of provocative topics, but the prevailing theme was that the field of epidemiology has evolved and the "new norm" consists of year 'round surveillance, response, and the continued discovery of emerging and re-emerging diseases. He also related that the bureau's pandemic influenza plan is being revised and will be distributed for review and comments soon.

The bioterrorism grant funding period may be changing to July 1st. In addition, this fiscal year will be status quo, with no new positions funded through the grant.

The bureau still has openings for a surveillance supervisor and an investigations supervisor. Both positions require previous government experience. Anyone who is interested should contact Don Ward directly. The surveillance supervisor is now a contract position.

High Priority Disease Tracking in Merlin. Karen Wheeler defined the new case managers for high priority diseases. This new procedure of assigning cases is the bureau's way of assuring high priority disease cases won't be forgotten after the initial report, and it also assists CHDs as they struggle to meet reporting requirements. The diseases and the reporting managers are:

Anthrax - Dr. Alan Rowan
Botulism - Dr. Joann Schulte
Brucellosis - Dr. Carina Blackmore
Hemorrhagic Fevers - Dr. Joann Schulte
Meningococcal Disease - Dr. Joann Schulte
Plague - Dr. Carina Blackmore
Q Fever - Dr. Carina Blackmore
Smallpox - Dr. Fermin Arguello
Staph aureus - Roger Sanderson, RN
Tularemia - Dr. Carina Blackmore

Training News. Melanie Black announced the next Grand Rounds will be held on Tuesday, March 30th from 11 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. EST. Tara Hylton, MPH will present on Florida's Cancer Registry: Data Collection, Analysis, and Utilization.  Nursing CEUs have been approved for this presentation. April Grand Rounds will be presented by Dr. Lilian Kigonya. 

Statewide epidemiology seminar information will be available on the intranet Web site next week. This year there will be 30 scholarships available. The criteria will be different from that of last year, with applicants judged on their participation in bureau activities during the past year. Only epidemiology staff will be eligible for scholarships.

Anyone wishing to appear on the agenda or propose agenda items for upcoming conference calls should contact Melanie Black or Don Ward at 850.245.4444. The next conference call is scheduled for Friday, March 26th.
 

• Angela Fix, MPH on "Effects of late reporting on data quality in the Florida sentinel physician influenza surveillance network," and "Influenza vaccine supply: Lessons learned during the 2003-2004 epidemic."
• Karen Wheeler, MPH on "Evaluation of laboratory testing for pertussis, Florida 1999-2003," and "Improving public health practice through respiratory syncytial virus surveillance."
• Don Ward for "Merlin: An innovative Web-based approach to communicable disease surveillance."
• Curt Miller for "Breastfeeding among new mothers: Associations between hospital staff's encouragement, breastfeeding initiation in the hospital, and breastfeeding duration."
• Zhaohui Fan for "Overweight and related behavioral factors among Florida high school youth."
• Yougie Huang for "Prevalence of diabetes and risk behaviors among Blacks and Hispanics with diabetes in Florida, 2002."

Sponsors:  Florida AHEC Network and Everglades Area Health Education Center, Inc.

Program also supported by:  A. G. Holley State Hospital, American Lung Association of Florida, Inc., Florida Bureaus of TB and Refugee Health and Laboratories.

Credits are for on-site attendees only. The Florida AHEC Network is accredited by the Florida Medical Association to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The network designates this educational activity for a maximum of 2.0 category 1 credit toward the AMA Physician's Recognition Award. Each physician should claim only those credits that he actually spent in the educational activity.

Teleconference:  For those unable to attend in person, you may listen to the lecture via the conference call number reserved for this purpose at 850.410.0967. Please place your telephone on mute so as not to disturb the speaker. There will be a Q & A session at the end.
 

Poster presentations give conference attendees a terrific opportunity to share and compare research with colleagues. Examples of acceptable topics include results of an outbreak investigation, new prevention programs at the local level or new laboratory methods in disease control. The session also presents an opportunity to demonstrate new computer and Web-based systems related to public health. 

Format for posters will follow the basic scientific paper outline, where applicable: 

• Background. The problem under investigation or hypothesis.
• Methodology. The experimental methods used, including type of study, number of cases, etc.
• Results. A summary of essential results.
• Conclusions. Summary of findings, supported by your results (the conclusions should be numbered if multiple points are presented). 

The poster session and reception will occur the first full evening of the seminar (May 18th). Posters can be displayed in a three-fold form board format or any other appropriate conference style. Whichever method you choose, be sure to have a primary and secondary point of contact for presentation. Each presenter will be responsible for ensuring that his or her own display is set up prior to the beginning of the session, and removed promptly afterward. Technical assistance will be available through Bureau of Epidemiology staff. 

If you would like to participate, please contact Karen Wheeler at 850.245.4444, ext. 2401 by May 3, 2004.
 

Across the nation, two states reported local activity; thirty-one states, including Florida, reported sporadic activity; and seventeen states reported no ILI activity for the week ending March 6. Mortality due to pneumonia and influenza (P&I) remained below the epidemic threshold for the week ending March 6. The percentage of patient visits seen with influenza-like illness to sentinel providers across the nation was 1.1% for week 09. 

The World Health Organization as of March 16 has reported no further cases of human infection with the avian influenza virus in Southeast Asia. The total number of human cases to date is 22 in Vietnam, of which 15 have passed away and 11 in Thailand, of which 7 have passed away. A fact sheet about the significance of avian influenza for human health can be found at the World Health Organization’s website: http://www.who.int.

The Bureau of Epidemiology would like to remind all participants in the Florida Sentinel Physician Influenza Surveillance Network to report weekly numbers even if no patients are seen with influenza-like illness (ILI) during the surveillance week. The data collected even when there is little to no influenza activity helps to establish baselines and thresholds for the state of Florida. Timeliness of reports is also necessary in order to accurately identify the ILI activity within a county, region and state. Weekly reports are due no later than the Tuesday at 5 p.m. EST following the end of the surveillance week. The Bureau of Epidemiology would like to thank all of the providers, county coordinators and state branch laboratories for their continued participation in the Florida Influenza Surveillance Programs.

For the World Health Organization’s website: http://www.who.int.

WN Virus activity: There were seven seroconversions to WN virus reported this week in sentinel chickens from Palm Beach (2/16), Pinellas (1/26, 2/16x2) and Walton (1/20, 2/12x2) counties.  A live brown thrasher (captured 2/6 in Okaloosa County) tested positive for WN virus. So far this year, there have been 47 seroconversions to WN virus in 10 counties, two WN-confirmed dead birds from Marion and Miami-Dade counties, three WN-positive live birds from two counties and one WN-confirmed horse from Polk County.  In all, fifteen counties have reported confirmed WN virus activity this year. 

SLE Virus activity: None this week. So far this year, five sentinel chickens from Lee County have tested positive for SLE. 

EEE Virus activity: A Taylor County horse (onset 1/16) tested positive for EEE this week.  There were two seroconversions to EEE virus in sentinel chickens from Walton County (2/25x2).  A live red-winged black bird (captured 2/25 in Okaloosa County) tested EEE positive this week. So far this year, nine sentinel chickens, three horses and two live birds have tested positive for EEE virus, for a total of seven counties reporting EEE virus activity in 2004. 

Highlands J Virus activity: There was one seroconversion to Highlands J virus in a sentinel chicken from Volusia County (2/23), the first sign of Highlands J this year.

See the web page for maps and summary information on 2003 activity: http://www.doh.state.fl.us/Environment/hsee/arbo/index.htm

Disclaimer: Please note that data is subject to change with confirmatory information. 

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