National Preparedness Month celebrates its ninth anniversary this September. Sponsored by the US Department of Homeland Security’s
Federal Emergency Management Agency, the goal of National Preparedness Month is to educate the public about how to prepare for emergencies, including natural disasters, mass casualties, biological and chemical threats, radiation emergencies, and terrorist attacks. Throughout September, 3,000 organizations – national, regional, and local public and private organizations – are supporting emergency preparedness efforts and encouraging all Americans to take action.
1
Having a prepared public health workforce is essential in preventing, responding to, and recovering rapidly from public health threats.
2 TRAIN, the premier learning resource for public health professionals, allows learners to search for web-based courses and/or live events that help to build emergency preparedness skills. Public health professionals can search through over 27,000 courses by utilizing the Public Health Preparedness Capabilities and Public Health Preparedness and Response Core Competency Model
search function.
Samples of web-based preparedness courses available on TRAIN include:
Looking for other ways to get involved with National Preparedness Month? Get involved with your local community! Participate in community exercises and support local first responders. Contact
Citizens Corps which coordinates activities to make communities safer, stronger and better prepared to respond to an emergency situation. Additionally, volunteer with the
Medical Reserve Corps (MRC). MRC are community-based units and function as a way to locally organize and utilize volunteers who want to donate their time and expertise to prepare for and respond to emergencies and promote healthy living throughout the year. Be ready, be informed, and get involved!