EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

Current Initiatives

We focus on building the emergency preparedness and response (EPR) capacity of state and territory maternal and child health (MCH) directors, practitioners, and stakeholders. Our federally funded programs, technical assistance and resource sharing support the MCH workforce in partnering and coordinating with state public health emergency preparedness and response (PHEP) to ensure that the MCH populations they serve are prioritized during emergencies. The populations include pregnant people, post-partum and women of reproductive age, newborns and infants, children and youth with special health care needs and their families, youth and adolescents, and persons with disabilities. It is imperative that public health leaders have the skills, resources, and appropriated lens to identify and meet the unique needs of these populations during various types of emergencies.

Current Initiatives

Funded by a five-year Cooperative Agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Reproductive Health, AMCHP leads the Emergency Preparedness and Response Action Learning Collaborative (EPR ALC). Each project year, we engage a cohort of state and territory Title V program leadership, key staff, and community partners in efforts to build partnerships and implement strategies that address emerging MCH issues. These efforts are designed to promote collaboration at the state level to improve programs and policies for MCH populations and their emergency preparedness and response needs. The EPR ALC is guided by AMCHP’s Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Checklist for Maternal and Infant Health.

In collaboration with The National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDD), this initiative aims to enhance the capabilities of maternal and child health, children and youth with special health care needs, and newborn screening and birth defects leadership and staff to actively engage in public health emergency responses. In project year one, the MCH Public Health Emergency Preparedness National Work Group shared resources, stories, and expertise that will inform the ongoing development of a web-based toolkit that supports, and responds to women, children, and families during emergencies.

Across internal teams, AMCHP is committed to supporting our members in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our organizational work includes monthly COVID-19 town hall meetings, an archive of weekly updates regarding a range of response and recovery topics like vaccinations and other guidance, and tailored technical assistance linking professionals to the resources they need to best serve MCH populations during the global crisis. To best support our members EPR communication efforts, AMCHP has developed a short series of bulletins addressing topics arising from and amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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