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. 2008 Jul-Aug;123(4):450-60.
doi: 10.1177/003335490812300406.

Regional public health emergency preparedness: the experience of Massachusetts Region 4b

John Grieb  1 , Mary E Clark
Affiliations

Regional public health emergency preparedness: the experience of Massachusetts Region 4b

John Grieb et al. Public Health Rep. 2008 Jul-Aug.

Abstract

Historically, local public health in Massachusetts has been largely decentralized, with each town responsible for providing local public health services. After 9/11, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) began to plan for bioterrorism and other possible public health emergencies and found that having 351 separate departments made emergency planning difficult and dispersing of funds a challenge. To facilitate this process, MDPH created seven emergency preparedness regions and asked local public health departments to engage in joint planning. This article describes the formation of Region 4b and how the region came together to work on emergency preparedness issues. It also examines the organizational, financial, and planning challenges associated with organizing these towns as a unified entity.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Communities in emergency preparedness Region 4b
Figure 2
Figure 2
Diagram of Massachusetts public health emergency preparedness planning regions
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Grieb J, Clark M. Principles of operation Massachusetts emergency preparedness region 4b. 2004. [cited 2008 Apr 8]. Available from: URL: http://www.cambridgepublichealth.org/services/emergency-preparedness/reg....
    1. U.S. Census Bureau. Census 2000. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office; 2002.
    1. Cambridge Public Health Department. Mutual aid agreement among public health agencies in emergency preparedness region. [cited 2008 Apr 8]. Available from: URL: http://www.cambridgepublichealth.org/services/emergency-preparedness/reg....

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