A listing of top-tier resources for local health departments (LHDs) is now available online to assist in addressing select CDC public health preparedness capabilities. As LHDs strive to achieve and enhance community preparedness and recovery capacity and capability, they often face an assortment of resources from a wide-ranging sources. With support from the CDC, NACCHO has developed a portfolio of vetted resources for LHDs to reference and use when addressing the CDC public health preparedness capabilities. This portfolio was designed to address the most pressing challenges and resource needs for LHDs, as identified by local public health practitioners, for the following areas from within the CDC Public Health Preparedness Capabilities: National Standards for State and Local Planning.

• Capability 1: Community Preparedness
• Capability 6: Information Sharing
• Capability 8: Medical Countermeasure Dispensing and 9: Medical Materiel Management and Distribution
• Capability 13: Public Health Surveillance and Epidemiological Investigation

Throughout this project, NACCHO collaborated with local public health preparedness experts and national partners, including working with the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) to identify, research, and validate tools, practices, and products that can assist LHDs in meeting select CDC public health preparedness capabilities. To set the foundation for the project and inform the process of vetting public health preparedness and response practices, NACCHO solicited information from local subject matter experts to identify priority LHD roles and challenges in addressing specific capabilities. NACCHO summarized this information through fact sheets that were presented to and vetted by multiple workgroups of local public health preparedness subject matter experts to ensure accuracy and comprehensiveness. The finished fact sheets guided the research and vetting process as CIDRAP developed a listing of top-tier resources and trainings available to assist LHDs with addressing these capabilities.

The final listing of validated resources and trainings available to assist LHDs with addressing CDC public health preparedness capabilities 1, 6, 8 & 9, and 13 is now available online and through NACCHO’s Preparedness webpage. NACCHO has also developed two short webcasts that further highlight the resources available for Capability 1: Community Preparedness, as well as Capability 8: Medical Countermeasure Dispensing and 9: Medical Materiel Management and Distribution. These webcasts are available now through NACCHO University.