As the holiday season quickly approaches and holiday shopping begins, find a gift that truly show those you love how much you care—the gift of preparedness. Check out Public Health Matters latest post for ideas on creating the perfect emergency kits for your friends and family.

Holiday meals can be memorable, but it takes more than a great recipe to make those memories happy. Learn how to prepare your meal safely so that your holiday isn’t spent dealing with food poisoning. Check out our new Public Health Matters post for a list of common food safety mistakes and tips for preventing them.

Meet Mark Hall, an emergency management specialist in CDC’s Division of Emergency Operations. Part of the Plans, Training, Exercise, and Evaluation Team — Mark and his team make sure CDC is prepared to respond to any public health emergency the agency may face.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) are investigating recent increases in fentanyl-related unintentional overdose fatalities in multiple states across the U.S. The purpose of this HAN advisory is to: (1) alert public health departments, health care providers, first responders, and medical examiners and coroners to the possibility of additional increases in other jurisdictions, (2) provide recommendations for improving detection of fentanyl-related overdose outbreaks and (3) encourage states to expand access to naloxone and training for administering naloxone to reduce opioid overdose deaths.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) are investigating recent increases in fentanyl-related unintentional overdose fatalities in multiple states across the U.S. The purpose of this HAN advisory is to: (1) alert public health departments, health care providers, first responders, and medical examiners and coroners to the possibility of additional increases in other jurisdictions, (2) provide recommendations for improving detection of fentanyl-related overdose outbreaks and (3) encourage states to expand access to naloxone and training for administering naloxone to reduce opioid overdose deaths.

Today people around the country participated in the national Shakeout earthquake drill. Public Health Matters looks back at the impact earthquakes can on people across the world by reflecting on the U.S. role in responding to the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

In July 2015, after noticing a spike in reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease from clinics and hospitals in the Bronx, a team of city, state, and CDC epidemiologists (disease detectives), laboratory scientists, and environmental health experts sprang into action to identify the source and contain the outbreak. Read more about the largest outbreak in Legionnaires’ disease ever recorded in New York City history in the latest Public Health Matters post.

On September 11, 2015, CDC issued HAN 00382 alerting healthcare providers and facilities about the public health need to properly maintain, clean, and disinfect or sterilize reusable medical devices. Recent infection control lapses due to non-compliance with recommended reprocessing procedures highlight a critical gap in patient safety. Healthcare facilities (e.g., hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, clinics, and doctors’ offices) that utilize reusable medical devices are urged to immediately review current reprocessing practices at their facility to ensure they (1) are complying with all steps as directed by the device manufacturers, and (2) have in place appropriate policies and procedures that are consistent with current standards and guidelines. After considering feedback from vendors that perform servicing and repair of reusable medical devices, we are amending HAN Advisory 382 to remove the following sentence: “If healthcare facilities contract maintenance and repair of these devices to third-party vendors, healthcare facilities should verify that these vendors are approved or certified by the manufacturer to provide those services.” We are making this change because there are currently no formal standardized programs or processes through which all manufacturers certify third-party vendors. We are also further clarifying that healthcare facilities which hire contractors to perform device reprocessing should verify that the contractor has an appropriate training program (i.e., consistent with what would be required in the healthcare facility) and that the training program includes the specific devices used by the healthcare facility.

On September 11, 2015, CDC issued HAN 00382 alerting healthcare providers and facilities about the public health need to properly maintain, clean, and disinfect or sterilize reusable medical devices. Recent infection control lapses due to non-compliance with recommended reprocessing procedures highlight a critical gap in patient safety. Healthcare facilities (e.g., hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, clinics, and doctors’ offices) that utilize reusable medical devices are urged to immediately review current reprocessing practices at their facility to ensure they (1) are complying with all steps as directed by the device manufacturers, and (2) have in place appropriate policies and procedures that are consistent with current standards and guidelines. After considering feedback from vendors that perform servicing and repair of reusable medical devices, we are amending HAN Advisory 382 to remove the following sentence: “If healthcare facilities contract maintenance and repair of these devices to third-party vendors, healthcare facilities should verify that these vendors are approved or certified by the manufacturer to provide those services.” We are making this change because there are currently no formal standardized programs or processes through which all manufacturers certify third-party vendors. We are also further clarifying that healthcare facilities which hire contractors to perform device reprocessing should verify that the contractor has an appropriate training program (i.e., consistent with what would be required in the healthcare facility) and that the training program includes the specific devices used by the healthcare facility.

Social media has enhanced how public agencies and residents communicate in an emergency. Public safety agencies across the country are increasingly combining the power of social networks with the power of connected neighbors to help create safer, more resilient communities. Learn how your online communities may be a critical resource for emergency alerts and notifications in the latest Public Health Matters post

As an international backpacker, Cullen Welch has been exposed to many experiences and foreign diseases that have challenged his health and immune system in ways he never expected—but he does not let these health risks slow him down. Instead he says, “I choose to be prepared by understanding how good hygiene, healthy habits, and vaccines can help me reduce these risks.” Read more about how Cullen prepares for everywhere, including his international travels, in the latest Public Health Matters blog.

Community preparedness requires participation from the entire community. Learn how public health and private sector partnerships can help local communities better prepare to respond to emergencies. The latest public health matters blog shows how one Virginia Costco is working with local public health partners to prepare for an emergency in which Costco’s warehouse could serve as a point of dispensing needed medications.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are alerting healthcare providers and facilities about the public health need to properly maintain, clean, and disinfect or sterilize reusable medical devices. Recent infection control lapses due to non-compliance with recommended reprocessing procedures highlight a critical gap in patient safety. Healthcare facilities (e.g., hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, clinics, and doctors’ offices) that utilize reusable medical devices are urged to immediately review current reprocessing practices at their facility to ensure they (1) are complying with all steps as directed by the device manufacturers, and (2) have in place appropriate policies and procedures that are consistent with current standards and guidelines.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are alerting healthcare providers and facilities about the public health need to properly maintain, clean, and disinfect or sterilize reusable medical devices. Recent infection control lapses due to non-compliance with recommended reprocessing procedures highlight a critical gap in patient safety. Healthcare facilities (e.g., hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, clinics, and doctors’ offices) that utilize reusable medical devices are urged to immediately review current reprocessing practices at their facility to ensure they (1) are complying with all steps as directed by the device manufacturers, and (2) have in place appropriate policies and procedures that are consistent with current standards and guidelines.

For the first week of National Preparedness Month, CDC is encouraging people to think about their family emergency preparedness plans! In our latest Public Health Matters post, Kelly was stuck in her car overnight with her 5 year old and twin babies during the Atlanta ice storm. Make sure your family has an emergency plan, and don’t forget preparedness plans span beyond just your home—prepare for everywhere!

Remembering the historic events of the Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, CDC’s Deputy Director and Chief Medical Officer for CDC’s Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response Dr. Dan Sosin sat down with Public Health Matters to talk about his experience deploying to Louisiana as a member of the United States Public Health Service. Looking back on a decade of emergency preparedness and response, Dr. Sosin shares how public health emergency response has evolved over the past 10 years.

We're at a tipping point: an increasing number of germs no longer respond to the drugs designed to kill them. Inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics and lack of infection control actions can contribute to drug resistant infections such as carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and put patients at risk for deadly diarrhea (caused by Clostridium difficile). Even if one facility is following recommended infection controls, germs can be spread inside of and between healthcare facilities when patients are transferred from one healthcare facility to another without appropriate actions to stop spread. During this call, clinicians will hear from some of the nation’s top clinical experts on preventing antibiotic resistant infections and improving antibiotic stewardship. Join the discussion to learn about best practices that can be implemented today to protect patients from these potentially deadly infections.

It is that time of year again—time to get the kids ready to go back to school! As school supplies are stuffed in backpacks, school bus schedules are double-checked, and first day of school outfits are perfected, make sure your emergency plans are in place, too. Our latest Public Health Matters blog has tips for students and parents to be prepared in case an emergency happens during the school day.

Most travelers to Africa know to protect themselves from malaria, but malaria is far from the only mosquito-borne disease threat. Recent studies have revealed that dengue, a disease that is well recognized in Asia and the Americas, may be commonly misdiagnosed as malaria in Africa. We still have much to learn about dengue in Africa, but learning where there is risk of dengue is the first step to avoiding it. Learn more in our latest blog post.

Whether it is a weekend getaway or cross-country road trip, travel plans will involve taking to the roads this summer. Be prepared for hazardous weather that can interrupt your plans and cause dangerous driving conditions.