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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Emergency preparedness and response

The National Risk Index for Natural Hazards
Dataset and online tool to help illustrate the communities most at risk for 18 natural hazards. Designed and built by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in collaboration with stakeholders and partners in academia; local, state and federal government; and private industry. Uses source data for natural hazard and community risk factors to develop a baseline relative risk measurement for each United States county and census tract.
Type: Map/Mapping System
Sponsoring organization: Federal Emergency Management Agency
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Disaster Available Supplies in Hospitals (DASH)
Interactive tool designed to help hospital emergency planners and supply chain staff estimate supplies that may need to be available immediately during mass casualty incidents and infectious disease emergencies, based on hospital characteristics. Comprises four modules which can provide hospitals a holistic view of the supplies needed to address various types of incidents.
Type: Tool
Sponsoring organization: Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response
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Rural Resilience
Provides resources for rural areas recovering from various disasters such as tornadoes, floods, pandemics, and more. Focuses on readiness, response, and recovery. Includes a U.S. map that shows the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) risk index by county.
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Housing Assistance Council
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Rural Disaster Health TA Responses
Examples of technical assistance (TA) requests related to rural health disasters, as addressed by the Technical Resources, Assistance Center, and Information Exchange (TRACIE). Includes links to resources on how healthcare facilities can apply for grant and funding assistance, hospital emergency operations plans, and discussion of how rural areas can prepare for and manage residents who test positive for COVID-19.
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response
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A Rural Capacity Map
Interactive maps displaying data to illustrate the variability across the country in community capacity to apply for funding, fulfill reporting requirements, and design, build, and maintain infrastructure projects. Variables include local government staffing, community education and engagement, and socioeconomic trends. Includes maps showing locations with high risk of wildfires or floods and low capacity.
Type: Map/Mapping System
Sponsoring organization: Headwaters Economics
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Disaster Behavioral Health Information Series Resource Center
Resource portal provides behavioral health disaster resources. Searchable portal allows filtering by type of disaster, target audience, and resource population such as American Indians and Alaska Natives and rural populations, among other indicators.
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: SAMHSA Disaster Technical Assistance Center
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Minority Health Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)
Data tool that maps social vulnerability at the county-level, which indicates communities that would most likely require support during an emergency, natural disaster, or public health crisis. Data dashboard can present data by state and can be customized based on level of vulnerability according to 6 themes, including socioeconomic status, household composition and disability status, language and minority status, healthcare infrastructure, medical vulnerability, and housing type and transportation.
Type: Map/Mapping System
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health
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Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) Calls/Webinars
Up-to-date guidance for clinicians from subject matter experts on key emergency preparedness and response topics. Slides and webinar recordings for past COCA calls are available.
Type: Calendar/Event List
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Rural Domestic Preparedness Consortium Online Training
Offers no-cost online disaster preparedness training for rural first responders. All courses are certified by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and some courses may require prerequisites.
Type: Tutorial/Training
Sponsoring organization: Rural Domestic Preparedness Consortium
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CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)
Identifies communities that may need support to prepare for and recover from disasters. Offers rankings by census tract based on 16 U.S. Census indicators focused on four themes: socioeconomic status; household composition; race, ethnicity, and language; and housing and transportation.
Additional links: County Maps, Interactive Map
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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