EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

Current Initiatives

Through the lens of workforce development, AMCHP focuses on building the emergency preparedness and response (EPR) capacity of state/territory Title V Maternal and Child Health (MCH) and Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) programs to prioritize MCH populations in preparing for, responding to, recovering from, and mitigating further disasters. We believe it is imperative that public health, clinical, and community leaders have the knowledge, skills, and resources needed to identify and meet these unique need needs across subpopulations such as: women of reproductive age including pregnant and postpartum women, newborns and infants, children and youth with special health care needs and their families, adolescents and young adults, and disabled people across the lifespan.

Current Initiatives

AMCHP and our partners aim to provide the public health and emergency management workforces with the foundational knowledge of strategies for addressing the unique needs of women of reproductive age, infants, children, adolescents, and families when disasters occur. Current and recent examples include:

Integrating Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Considerations in Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) Efforts . These two online, self-paced courses support content learning for individuals working in or intersecting with governmental public health, poised to influence outcomes for MCH populations, or providing services to communities during and in the aftermath of emergencies. After passing a summary post-test, participants will be eligible for multiple types of Continuing Education (CE) through the CDC’s TRAIN platform.
Between 2018 and 2023, AMCHP hosted an Action Learning Collaborative (ALC) for multidisciplinary staff teams from health departments in 22 U.S. states and territories. Teams participated in didactic trainings focused on capacity building strategies, engaged in activity prioritization and action planning with support from an assigned subject matter expert coach, and cultivated a national network. We have submitted and hope to soon be able to share a scholarly journal article describing this process, major themes, and future directions.

Individual champions working within and alongside jurisdictional health departments are catalysts for the capacity needed to anticipate and meet MCH populations during all phases of emergency management. AMCHP is committed to investing in these individuals’ leadership trajectories and positioning them to influence critical decision making within Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs) and other entities. Examples of this commitment include:

In 2025, AMCHP launched a first-of-its-kind leadership academy for state/territory governmental staff with explicit or functional responsibility for prioritizing MCH in the context of broader EPR efforts. This hybrid experience will include half-day virtual sessions covering a range of interconnected topics, exploration of the strengths and opportunities associated with participants’ leadership styles, completion of a capstone project with access to “hot seat coaching,” and an in-person forum to support community building. Learn more and apply here.
In future years, AMCHP hopes to conduct a comprehensive assessment of jurisdictional health departments to prioritize MCH populations within EPR policies and practices. This process will involve key informant interviews, focus groups, surveys, and analysis of publicly available datasets. Stay tuned for opportunities to contribute, as well as a major findings and recommendations report.

In addition to contributions to other organizations’ resources, AMCHP has produced and iteratively revised two foundational items in this space.

The Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Checklist for Maternal and Infant Health. Developed in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this document describes capacity building activities for multidisciplinary teams of jurisdictional health agency staff. It includes supplemental guidance on the intention, time, and energy required to implement each activity.
Building Resilience from Lived Experience. This curated anthology of stories from individuals who have experienced the personal and professional impacts of emergencies. It aims to build the evidence base for policies and practices that support preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation efforts with MCH populations in mind.

Our team is committed to establishing and implementing sustainable mechanisms for collecting and responding to EPR-focused technical assistance (TA) and support requests from AMCHP members. We facilitate connections to resources and coordinate external expertise to ensure that our members are equipped to respond to public health emergencies. For TA requests, email workforce@amchp.org.

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

Recent Resources & Tools

National Performance Measure (NPM) Implementation Toolkits

This series of toolkits provide specific evidence-based practices, reports, publications, and resources which can be adapted and implemented. The toolkits are specific to each Title V National Performance Measure (NPM), but they can be used by all MCH professionals. The goal of sharing these resources is to encourage Title V programs and other partners to share their NPM specific strategies and resources to support and improve MCH practice implementation across the United States. Click on each of the toolkits below to learn more. Read More

Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Checklist for Maternal and Infant Health

Originally designed to guide interdisciplinary teams from U.S. states, territories, or freely associated states (inclusively referred to as “jurisdictions” throughout the document) participating in AMCHP’s Emergency Preparedness and Response Action Learning Collaborative, this checklist is intended to augment the capacity of all jurisdictions to ensure that women of reproductive age, especially postpartum women, and infants are planned for in the event of emergencies – including multiple emergencies with intersecting impacts. Much of the content, however, has applicability for the broader maternal and child health (MCH) population, including children with special health care needs and their families. Read More

EPR MIH Online Trainings and Resources

This non-exhaustive list includes links to trainings and resources created by CDC, FEMA, ASPR, and EPA, as well as other federal agencies and non-federal organizations. Read More

State and Territory Policy Strategies Supporting MCH During COVID-19 (National Governors Association)

Results from a 2020 survey of nearly 40 executive branch officials regarding state/territory policies to safeguard against COVID-19 for pregnant women, postpartum women, and infants. Read More

CDC Emergency Preparedness and Response Communication Resources

A list of tools, guides, and sample maternal and infant health preparedness and safety messages for disasters. Read More