Delaware County Earns Perfect Score for Third Straight Year for Emergency Preparedness

Delaware County Council and its preparedness team earned a perfect score of 100 for the third consecutive year from a federal review team, indicating the county is well-prepared for a mass emergency.

County government’s Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) program achieved a perfect score of 100 in the 2013 Federal Technical Assistance Review (TAR).  

The SNS program is planned and implemented by Delaware County Emergency Services, the County Department of Intercommunity Health, Pennsylvania Department of Health, The Crozer-Keystone Health System, and many other public and private partners.

The plan is a critical component in the county’s all-hazards preparedness and response program.  Specifically the SNS program enables the county to respond to natural or manmade disasters that would require provision of potentially life-saving medication to the whole county in as little as 48 hours.

“This perfect TAR score is a sign of the outstanding efforts and dedication of the County’s Emergency Services and Intercommunity Health Coordination staff members as well as our SNS partners including our hospitals, school districts, universities, care facilities, municipalities and emergency response agencies,” said County Council Chairman Thomas J. McGarrigle.

“While we are proud of our perfect score, we continue to refine and improve our SNS program, continually evaluating all of our emergency plans in an ever-changing world where the threats are always changing,” McGarrigle said.

Emergency preparedness is a top priority for County Council. The perfect scores are a result of the focused planning, training, exercise and team coordination. Achievement of a single score of 100 is an achievement, but earning a perfect score for three consecutive years indicates the county’s high level of readiness to any major public health emergency. Delaware County is one of only a few counties that have achieved this level of consistent quality for the SNS Plan.

The TAR is conducted annually by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Strategic National Stockpile (DSNS) to assess Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) planning at state and county levels. The purpose of the annual evaluation is to analyze results, identify strengths to be maintained and built upon, identify potential areas for further improvement, and support development of corrective actions.

On June 26-27, Delaware County will execute the fifth test of its SNS Plan in a Full Scale Exercise (FSE). The 36-hour-event will include simulating a response to a major health crisis that requires rapid dispensing of medication to residents. Such a crisis could result from a variety of natural causes, such as a pandemic, or from manmade disasters such as industrial accidents or terrorist attacks. The event will involve 250 staff members and volunteers, including members of the Medical Reserve Corps, and 100 facilities across the county.

“This upcoming exercise is critical in our preparation for a major public health emergency,” Chairman McGarrigle said. “The citizens of Delaware County can be confident that we have an excellent SNS Plan and the excellent public-private partnerships needed to implement it.”

The SNS is a federally managed program that, in the event of a major public health emergency, provides medication, medical equipment and medical supplies to states and counties in the event that local resources and supplies are not adequate.

Typical planning scenarios include terrorist attack, pandemic influenza and mass Anthrax exposure. In the event of an actual emergency, citizens would be given specific instructions, and in most cases, would be directed to go to various Points of Dispensing (PODs) to receive medication. During a widespread disease outbreak, natural disaster or terrorist attack, the ability to quickly get pharmaceuticals and other medical supplies to affected individuals may be a matter of life and death.

In the event of an actual public health emergency, residents would be notified where to go, what to bring regarding personal medical information and what to expect at a pre-planned public point of dispensing (POD). The County would provide specific public information and instructions via the emergency alert broadcasting system, Delco Alert, the county website, and through various news media outlets. Residents would receive prompt warnings of emergencies with text messages and e-mails to cell phones and other wireless devices. For more information or to sign up for the alert system, visit the Delaware County government website at www.co.delaware.pa.us.