Preparedness Unit

Mission

The mission of the Preparedness Unit within the Division of Disease Control is to support the Florida Department of Health’s goals for prevention and response to public health emergencies due to biological agents in collaboration with the Division of Emergency Medical Operations, the Office of Public Health Preparedness and the Office of Emergency Operations.
To best protect the public, the preparedness efforts must be focused on agents that might have the greatest impact on U.S. health and security, especially agents that are highly contagious or that can be engineered for widespread dissemination via small-particle aerosols.  The federal government has developed the National Response Plan in order to develop emergency-ready public health departments by upgrading, integrating and evaluating state and local public health jurisdictions’ preparedness for and response to terrorism and other biological public health emergencies.

In alignment with the National Response Plan, the CDC has developed a strategic plan and identified preparedness goals and measures to monitor public health system response performance. CDC's strategic plan is based on the following five focus areas, with each area integrating training and research:

• preparedness and prevention
• detection and surveillance
• diagnosis and characterization of biological and chemical agents
• response
• communication

Goals of the Preparedness Unit:

Based on grant guidance and funding priorities in alignment with those of CDC, the overarching goals of the Preparedness Unit are outlined below:

Goal 1

Further develop statewide emergency response plans related to infectious disease public health emergencies such as those due to pandemic influenza, bioterrorism or other biological agents.

Goal 2

Enhance the Division’s ability to provide accurate data, reports and records for the rapid detection, investigation and response to disease outbreaks.

Goal 3

Educate and train the health care workforce regarding emergency response to infectious disease public health emergencies.

Goal 4

Exercise state-level plans related to infectious disease public health emergencies.