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medpundit |
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Wednesday, June 04, 2003On May 7, 2003, before the House Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, the General Accounting Office (GAO) identified a number of gaps in public health preparedness that could interfere in the nation’s response to a disease threat such as SARS. In site visits to seven cities and their respective state governments, GAO found that the level of preparedness varied and planning for regional coordination was lacking. The state and local officials identified communication problems, inadequacies in their surveillance systems and laboratory facilities, and workforce shortages due to state budget cuts and a shortage of people with the necessary skills. Most hospitals lacked the capacity to treat a large influx of infectious disease patients due to already overcrowded emergency departments, lack of adequate medical equipment, personal protective supplies, isolation facilities, and staff. While four out of five hospitals surveyed by GAO reported having developed an emergency response plan for large-scale infectious disease outbreaks, few have participated in drills or exercises. That’s depressing. UPDATE: The Bloviator points out that the original GAO testimony is available on the web here. (Although the report I quoted from was on SARS, and the quote is a paraphrased version of the GAO testimony.) posted by Sydney on 6/04/2003 12:09:00 PM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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