ADA National Network Learning Session: Including People with Disabilities in Emergency Planning- Projects from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

ADA National Network Learning Session: Including People with Disabilities in Emergency Planning- Projects from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

14th April, 2016

At the federal level, while FEMA gets most of the attention for doing work around emergencies, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is also involved. CDC funds projects that include people with disabilities and other access and functional needs in emergency planning and preparedness. Today's session will review the efforts of some of these projects, including a presentation from one of the grantees at the Iowa Office of Disability and Health concerning including people with disabilities in disaster drills and exercises.

Learning objectives:

  • Increase awareness of the importance of including PWDs as participants in emergency preparedness drills and exercises
  • Increase awareness among disaster management personnel of existing misperceptions about people with disabilities
  • Educate stakeholders about ways to utilize their disability expertise as evaluators during exercises and drills
  • Educate disaster management personnel about ways to improve the level of engagement of the disability community in drills and exercises

Presenters:

Maleeka Glover ScD MPH is a Commander (CDR) in the Public Health Service and is a Senior Epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Glover is currently the Lead for Vulnerable Populations planning for Pandemic Influenza with the Influenza Coordination Unit (ICU) at CDC. In this role she provides leadership and coordination for the planning and response activities for vulnerable populations for seasonal influenza and during a pandemic. She also leads influenza related vulnerable population projects with CDC subject matter experts and external partners. Dr. Glover is trained as a Social Epidemiologist and holds a doctorate (ScD) in Health and Social Behavior from the Harvard School of Public Health, where she majored in Social Epidemiology and minored in Biostatistical Methods for Community Based Research. She received a Master of Public Health degree in Epidemiology from the University of Michigan School of Public Health. She is also a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES).

Karin Ford is a Community Health Consultant in the Office of Disability and Health for the Iowa Department of Public Health. Before joining IDPH, she worked as a Case Manager for the Iowa Department of Human Service, providing placement and services for people of all ages throughout Iowa. Ms. Ford is a master's level Art Therapist, CISM and NOVA trained and is a member of the Iowa Crisis Response Team. She has an Iowa Certification in Emergency Management and responded to numerous disasters including a 21 day deployment to the gulf coast following Hurricane Katrina. She also has extensive knowledge with Americans with Disabilities Act compliance, completing over 700 site visits throughout the state. Ms. Ford is active in disability advocacy groups and councils and presents on inclusive disaster preparedness and accessible sheltering at the local, state and federal level.

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