Georgia MCH understands the importance of Emergency Preparedness (EP) planning and response as it relates to MCH populations. MCH makes a conscience effort to develop a partnership with DPH’s Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) and Healthcare Preparedness Program (HPP) Teams on the state and local levels to ensure that the needs of women of reproductive age, pregnant women, infants, children, adolescents, and Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN) were considered, especially during emergency response and recovery phases of tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, and pandemics.

Georgia’s MCH and Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Supplemental Nutrition Programs, located in the Health Promotion Division, work closely together to support Emergency Preparedness operations during the mitigation, planning, response, and recovery phases of critical emergency incidents to mitigate adverse effects and promote better outcomes for public health populations.

Within the Georgia Department of Public Health, the Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) Section is responsible for generating and maintaining the State’s Emergency Operation Plan (EOP). The EOP is reviewed annually with internal and external partners, and then updated accordingly. Individual partner updates are added throughout the year.

Georgia’s EOP historically considered the needs of the MCH population within its normal categories of populations, and more specifically under Vulnerable Populations, which includes: the elderly, nursing home residents, those with chronic conditions, neonates, those with intellectual disabilities, pregnant women, the homeless, etc. However, with the intentional “informal” creation of MCH and EP Liaisons, as well as Title V CYSHCN, Women’s Health, Communications, WIC, and Home Visiting, much progress has been made in explicitly defining the MCH population and in enhancing Georgia’s EOP to better support this population.

The Title V Team Lead serves as a member of Georgia’s Department of Health Emergency Assistance Resource Team (DHEART) and is invited to participate in EP meetings, activities, trainings, conferences, state and local exercises, and response and recovery activities. The Title V Team Lead is invited to the annual EOP partner meeting and is also a core consultant in the development and maintenance of the MCH annex of the State’s EOP.

The Health Promotion Division Director and the MCH Director are intricately involved in EP planning and activities. There is a one-to-one link between the Health Promotion Director (MCH/WIC) and the Health Protection Director (EP), between the MCH/WIC Directors and the EP Deputy Director, and between the MCH program staff and EP Liaisons, thus EP planning activity information is continuously flowing horizontally across divisions and vertically through each division.

Title V Leadership is not currently a part of the Incident Management Structure (IMS); however, Title V Leadership is informed of and engaged in all critical emergency events. Not all functions of an IMS are required for every event. Should the need arise, depending upon the magnitude and duration of an event, all Title V Staff have received basic emergency preparedness training, and training to support the Emergency Operations Center. This includes Division Leadership, Title V Leadership, Fiscal, Communications, Administration, Programmatic, and Administrative Staff. District level Title V staff are required to provide more intensive support of local emergencies, as local agencies lead community efforts during an emergency event. MCH is prepared to assist EP by implementing an “all hands on-deck” approach should the need arise.

The Title V Team Lead serves as the MCH Liaison to the PHEP section. In this role the Team Lead serves on various committees to ensure MCH populations are considered and supported in the planning and response activities conducted by PHEP. The EP Functional Needs Support Services (FNSS), Underserved Populations (USP) Committee, and Emergency Preparedness Coalition for Individuals with Disabilities and Older Adults develop trainings and other resources to be presented and delivered to EP Directors, local emergency management agencies, state agencies, and federal partners. Other agency representation on those committees includes, Georgia Division on Aging, Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA/HS), The Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, Georgia’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Coordinator’s Office, Region IV Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Georgia Healthcare Association, etc.

In addition to committees that develop training and resources, the Title V MCH Liaison and EP Liaison meet regularly to plan trainings for EP and MCH staff on both the state and local levels. EP has provided trainings to MCH staff, and MCH staff have provided trainings to educate EP staff about MCH population characteristics and needs.

All MCH staff are required to complete the Incident Command System (ICS 100) basic emergency preparedness training and are offered additional opportunities to participate in EP trainings and conferences. The Title V Team Lead works with the Public Health Communications team to develop messaging to support the MCH population during emergency events. MCH messaging is separate from departmental messaging for all populations and the community. Departmental messaging is coordinated by the EP Communications Manager and the Departmental Communications Director.

The MCH Section was one of eight states selected to participate in the 2019-2020 CDC/AMCHP EP and Response Action Learning Collaborative. States were required to complete a state-specific project in support of Maternal and Infant Health, and to complete a checklist of 22 activities with multiple steps during a ten-month period. Completing the checklist of 22 activities led to adding the development of coordination plans for programs such as Newborn Screening, WIC, Home Visiting, Sheltering, Women’s Health, CYSHCN, Safe Sleep, Family Planning, and Breastfeeding.  This activity was added to the current MCH EP workplan.

The framework for the maternal and infant Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) plan at the state/territorial level included the following strategies:

1. Integrate MCH considerations into state/territory EPR Plan
2. Develop a plan to gather epidemiologic/surveillance data on women of reproductive age and infants to guide action
3. Establish/promote EPR communication about target population with clinical   partners, public health and governmental partners, and with the general pubic
4. Identify public health programs, interventions, and policies to protect/promote health and prevent disease and injury in emergencies among maternal and infant populations

MCH EP will continue to be proactive in EP planning and to coordinate with partners at the state and local levels to development emergency preparedness and response plans that include the needs of the MCH population. Title V will continue to assess the adequacy of the EOP in responding to an emerging public health threat or disaster that impacts the MCH population.