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State of Nevada Seal Division of Public and Behavioral Health (DPBH)

PHP Background

Background

The PHP program was initiated in 2002 to strengthen Nevada's response to public health emergencies. PHP receives federal grant funding primarily from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), both of which are overseen by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

The CDC is recognized as the lead federal agency for protecting the health and safety of people at home and abroad, providing credible information to enhance health decisions, and promoting health through strong partnerships. The CDC serves as the national focus for developing and applying disease prevention and control, environmental health, and health promotion and education activities designed to improve the health of the people of the United States.

ASPR grants aid to states, territories and selected entities to: improve the capacity of the health care system; including hospitals, emergency departments, outpatient facilities, Emergency Medical Service (EMS) systems and poison control centers; and to respond to incidents requiring mass immunization, isolation, decontamination, diagnosis and treatment in the aftermath of terrorism or other public health emergencies.

Currently, the PHP program seeks to: further develop preparedness planning and state readiness assessments; enhance laboratory systems for rapid detection and surveillance of illness outbreaks and other public health threats and emergencies; execute effective risk communication with the media and the public during a public health emergency; and assess and conduct appropriate training and education for key public health professionals in collaboration with partner agencies.

What is PHP?

Public Health Preparedness includes action/steps to prepare for, respond to, and recover from events or threats to the health of the community or healthcare system. Examples of events or threats to the health of the community or healthcare system include:

Natural Disasters and Severe Weather
- Earthquakes
- Floods
- Extreme Heat
- Wildfires
- Winter Weather
Bioterrorism
- Anthrax
- Smallpox 
- Plague
Chemical 
- Nerve Agents 
- Ricin
Radiation
- Nuclear
Mass Casualties
- Explosions
- Injuries
- Illness (i.e. Pandemic Flu)

In Nevada, the State Division of Public and Behavioral Health (DPBH) office of Public Health Preparedness (PHP) is funded through two federal funding sources; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) office of Public Health Emergency Response (PHEP) and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP). This funding is distributed throughout Nevada to our preparedness partners through sub-grants and work programs. A list of these PHP partners is included below. For more information on local programs please use the links provided on our PHP homepage.

1. Carson City Health and Human Services
2. Washoe County Health District
3. Southern Nevada Health District
4. Community Health Services
5. Nevada Hospital Association
6. Nevada State Public Health Laboratory
7. Inter-Tribal Emergency Response Commission

So, how do we determine what action/steps to take to prepare for, respond to, and recover from an all-hazards approach to preparedness? The PHP office, in conjunction with our partners throughout the state are tasked with the responsibility of showing significant achievement/improvement in public health preparedness, both on the public health side as well as the hospital/healthcare setting. To focus those efforts, CDC developed 15 preparedness capabilities for the PHEP grant. In an effort to create a unified and consistent response, ASPR aligned with PHEP in developing eight, HPP specific, preparedness capabilities thereby creating a comprehensive national and statewide focus on capabilities.

For a complete list of the CDC capabilities, check out our Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) page; for a complete list of the ASPR capabilities, please navigate to our Healthcare Preparedness Program (HPP) page. Some of these capabilities will be focused on each year of the project period, such as: Community Preparedness and Healthcare System Preparedness; some capabilities and functions within those capabilities will take more than one year to complete, such as HPP #10: Medical Surge, Function #4: Crisis Standards of Care. The specific capability functions help the State determine how to achieve a capability – and to what capacity.