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May 16, 2024
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Happy Hospital Week!
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Future Meetings
See all GHA meetings.
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Resources
GHA Coronavirus Information
COVID-19 information and resources.
Ebola
The Department of Public Health (DPH) offers answers to your Ebola questions.
State Epidemiologist
24-hour access to a State Epidemiologist: 1-866-PUB-HLTH.
CDC Information
Visit www.cdc.gov to stay up to date on current information.
Disaster Mental Health
The Georgia Disaster Mental Health website addresses the mental health components of disasters.
Georgia Crisis and Access Line (GCAL) Visit to access behavioral health services.
SAMHSA: Preventing Suicide
Visit the suicide prevention resource page.
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The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Department of Health and Human Services, and Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center released a joint cybersecurity advisory to provide information on Black Basta, a ransomware variant whose actors have encrypted and stolen data from at least 12 out of 16 critical infrastructure sectors, including the health care and public health sector.
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Health care provider Ascension, which operates 140 hospitals across 19 states, fell victim to a cyberattack that took down multiple essential systems including electronic health records (EHRs), the MyChart platform for patient communication, and certain medication and test-ordering systems. The organization disclosed the attack on May 8 and said it is actively investigating it with internal and external advisers, prioritizing patient safety amid the disruption.
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a Class I "most serious type of recall" for an iOS app used in conjunction with an insulin pump. The "correction" as referred to by the FDA, rather than a product removal, relates to the t:connect Mobile App iOS v2.7. It was confirmed by Tandem Diabetes Care, which stated that Android app users are not included in the recall. "The t:connect mobile app works with the t:slim X2 insulin pump with Control-IQ technology," the FDA states.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) unveiled a new influenza A wastewater tracker, part of its surveillance for H5N1 avian influenza, as three states reported more detections in dairy herds. With the strong possibility that dairy cows can be spreading H5N1 asymptomatically and because testing in dairy herds has been spotty with delays in reporting, virologists and public health officials are looking at other ways—including wastewater testing—to gain better visibility on where H5N1 might be spreading.
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There is something in the water, and it may be forever. As more research comes out on what goes into water streams and into our bodies, so too are the realizations that what we may be drinking is not the best for us. In a release by The Guardian, it is reported that up to 70 million people in the United States are being exposed to PFAs, known as "forever chemicals," in drinking water systems. Testing by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is still being carried out, with only one-third of the country's public water systems analyzed so far.
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A wide range of sandwiches and other chilled foods have been recalled due to Listeria. The bacteria can cause food poisoning, and although illness is usually mild, it can cause serious complications such as meningitis. All chilled ready-to-eat foods made branded Bread Spread, Orbital Foods and Perfect Bite with a use by date between May 10 and May 18, 2024 have been recalled. These include sandwiches, wraps, baguettes, twists, frenchsticks and torpidos with a range of fillings. The brands are typically sold in independent convenience stores.
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Natural Sourcing International voluntarily recalled one lot of Great Value Organic Black Chia Seeds because it may be contaminated with Salmonella. The recall was reported by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) on May 13. The recalled products are Great Value Organic Black Chia Seeds sold in 32-ounce bags. The lot code is 24095 C018, which is printed on the bottom of the back panel of the package. The expiration date is Oct. 30, 2026, and the UPC is 078742300665.
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Three Schnucks cheese products have been recalled voluntarily by Schnucks Markets Inc. due to possible salmonella contamination, the company announced recently. The recalled products include Schnucks Whip Cream Spread, Schnucks Strawberry Spread, and Schnucks Cream Cheese Spread, all of which could be contaminated with salmonella, putting consumers at risk of potentially life-threatening infection.
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Botox injections that may be counterfeit or mishandled are part of an investigation into illnesses across nine states, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the US Food and Drug Administration said in separate announcements. Of the 19 people who've had harmful reactions and are noted in the investigation, nine have been hospitalized, according to the CDC, and no deaths have been reported. States that have reported reactions include Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee and Washington.
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NEWSLETTERS
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CISA Community Bulletin - May 2024
ASPR Healthcare Readiness Bulletin - May 13
Georgia Weekly Influenza Report - Week 18
MESH Weekly Situational Awareness Brief - May 10
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report - May 9
News and Notes - May 10
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EDUCATION
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Emergency Preparedness Systems Training:
Everbridge Training
GHC911 Training
ASPR TRACIE Webinar
June 5
GHCA Summer Convention
June 16-20
Joint Commission International Emergency Management Conference
June 19-20
National Healthcare Coalition Preparedness Conference
Dec. 10-12
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RESOURCES AND REMINDERS
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Nebraska Hospital Association Tornado Relief Fund
The Nebraska Hospital Association has established a relief fund following a tornado on April 26. All funds raised will go to help displaced hospital employees in the affected areas.
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Georgia Hurricane Response Hub
The Georgia Hurricane Response Hub has trainings and resources to help public health and health care professionals with their hurricane and disaster response duties.
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Reminder: Identify, Isolate and Inform!
Identify, Isolate and Inform: It is important to continue to ask travel questions. The purpose of this notice is to remind health care providers about actions to take in Georgia when evaluating patients for possible serious communicable diseases!
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Travel Clinical Assistant (TCA)
The Travel Clinical Assistant provides post-travel clinical information on travel-related diseases for 231 countries. Diseases with recent outbreaks occurring in the last two years are listed first.
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ONLINE PREPAREDNESS TOOLS and
TIPS & TRICKS
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Everbridge
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Sign up for an Everbridge account
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If you need to reach GHA for a Disaster/Emergency Preparedness-related issue after hours, please contact Mallory Garrett, 706-934-0711.
The Disaster Readiness Line Newsletter is circulated by Georgia's Healthcare Coalitions to our emergency preparedness partners.
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Georgia Hospital Association
380 Interstate North Parkway SE
Suite 150
Atlanta, GA 30339
770-249-4500
www.gha.org
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