January 2022 Newsletter
WELCOME TO THE HEALTHCARE COALITION OF MAINE NEWSLETTER
OUR MISSION
The mission of the Healthcare Coalition of Maine (HCCME) is to develop and sustain a powerful coalition of health care organizations, first responders, and other key partners united to save lives and improve health outcomes during disasters through preparedness, planning, response, and recovery efforts.
Coalition Updates
Website Password Annual Change
Friendly reminder that the Coalition changes our password to the Member Portal every calendar year, therefore, the password has been changed to HCCMEMember22!
Capacity Survey for Acute Care Hospitals Reminder
Please complete the HCCME Hospital Capacity Survey by January 21, 2022. The brief capacity assessment should take no more than 5 minutes to complete. The information we are requesting will be critical for the development of the HCCME Medical Response Surge Exercise (MRSE) in March and the HCCME Burn Surge Annex.
To avoid duplication of effort, we have asked hospitals to please identify a single POC from your facility to complete the survey.
If you believe your facility has not received the email containing the survey link please contact us by email.
Public Information Officers (PIO) Training and Resources
The HCCME has compiled a variety of training opportunities and resources for coalition member organizations and their designated Public Information Officers. This training is intended for those who wish to pursue additional PIO training and to further their capacity to respond and support health and medical efforts in Maine during an emergency.
Visit the Coalition’s Public Information Officers Training and Resources page to learn more.
Upcoming Coalition Events
February
HCCME will be hosting a Joint Chapter Meeting on February 10th from 9:00-10:30AM via Zoom. This will be in place of the 3 previously scheduled chapter meetings.
Meeting to include a presentation on what a Respiratory Protection Program (RPP) is, the importance of RPPs and how to write a RPP that best suits your facility! The Maine Disaster Behavioral Health Program will also be providing an overview of their services and how they can assist communities in times of disaster. Register HERE in advance!
March
HCCME will host a Burn Surge TTX during our March 16th Statewide Meeting. This virtual exercise will be testing the Coalition’s Draft Burn Surge Annex to our Emergency Response Plan. Please register HERE in advance to join us for this exercise!
Organization Agreement Form Submittals
HCCME would like to thank the latest organizations that have submitted new Organization Agreement Forms!
• Avita of Brunswick
• Coastal Opportunities
• Eastport Memorial Nursing Home
• Maine Veterans' Homes- Central Office
• Maine Primary Care Association
• Northern Light Home Care & Hospice
• Penobscot Community Health Care
• Penobscot Valley Hospital
• Pinnacle Health & Rehab
• Southern Maine Health Care
• Southwest Harbor Tremont Ambulance
As a reminder, all organizations involved with the coalition are encouraged to complete the new organization agreement form as any older version of a membership agreement submitted prior to November 2021 is no longer valid.
We appreciate our membership taking a few moments in their day to move your organization along to the next step in the process to becoming an “active member”.
Three POSITIONS AVAILABLE!
All Clear Emergency Management Group is searching for TWO detail oriented, highly skilled and motivated Healthcare Coalition Coordinators to join our growing team! These positions will provide coverage to the Northern and Southern Chapters by planning, implementing, and evaluating activities associated with the Coalition. Additionally, this position will recruit and maintain a diverse coalition membership with hospital, public health, emergency management, emergency medical services and other healthcare partners.
For more information, see the full job description located here. Cover letters and resumes should be submitted by email to jobs_HCCME@AllClearEMG.com.
We also continue to search for a detail oriented, highly skilled and motivated Contract Clinical Advisor to join our team! This position will serve the HCCME, by providing clinical leadership and serving as a liaison between the Coalition and medical directors/medical leadership at health care facilities, supporting entities (e.g., blood banks), and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) agencies.
For more information, see the full job description located here. Cover letters and resumes should be submitted by email to jobs+clinical@AllClearEMG.com.
Major Changes in Exercise Design: From the Coalition Surge Test to the Medical Response and Surge Exercise
Coalition-level exercising has been a cornerstone of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) Hospital Preparedness Program, and on October 27, 2021, ASPR unveiled new exercise requirements for all funded healthcare coalitions.
The Medical Response and Surge Exercise (MRSE) is now a required exercise that is replacing the Coalition Surge Test. There are a few significant changes:
• This is no-longer a “no-notice” exercise and the 90-minute limit timeframe has been removed
• The exercise type transitioned from a tabletop with functional elements to an operations-based functional exercise designed to examine and evaluate the capabilities and functions of Health Care Coalitions (HCCs) and their members to support medical surge response
• The exercise scenario no longer has to be evacuation; Healthcare Coalitions have more flexibility in choosing what their surge scenario will be
• There is the potential to use a real-world event to meet this exercise requirement, although there are specific criteria that must be met
• ASPR has developed a situation manual, evaluation plan and exercise planning and evaluation tool for HCC’s to use to conduct this exercise
At this time, ASPR does not plan to waive this exercise as a requirement for Fiscal Year 2021-2022, which means HCCME must conduct the exercise by April 30, 2022 and submit all documentation and data by June 30, 2022. We are currently in the initial planning stages and beginning to gather data to complete. For a more complete view of the exercise changes, click HERE to review the MRSE Rollout Webinar Slides.
Partner Resources
FDA Grants Emergency Use Authorization for Two Oral Antiviral Drugs to Treat COVID-19
Last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorizations to Pfizer for Paxlovid and to Merck for Molnupiravir. These oral antiviral drugs are now authorized for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 in adult patients ages 18 years and older who are at high risk for progressing to severe COVID-19. Paxlovid is also authorized for use in pediatric patients ages 12 years and older. ASPR will oversee allocation of 10 million courses of Paxlovid and three million courses of Molnupiravir purchased by the federal government. HHS and ASPR will ensure fair and equitable distribution of these oral antiviral drugs to state and territorial health departments.
ASPR Announces Launch of a New Website at ASPR.HHS.gov
Check out ASPR’s newly redesigned website to learn about innovative approaches to fighting COVID-19, health care readiness, response operations, medical countermeasures, ASPR’s budget and funding, and more. ASPR has just completed the first phase of its transition from www.PHE.gov to https://ASPR.HHS.gov. The new site is simple to navigate, showcases ASPR’s mission and priorities, and is loaded with information you can use. Bookmark it today!
partner trainings and webinars
All Clear Webinar Series
ASPR TRACIE: Now Available Online: “Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) Formulary Update” Webcast
A recording of the “Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) Formulary Update” webcast is now available on TRAIN.org. The formulary update provides public health partners and stakeholders with an overview of the nation’s repository of emergency medical countermeasures (MCMs), including pharmaceuticals, medical supplies, equipment, and devices for lifesaving care currently available in the SNS as of December 2021. This informational webinar will help participants better understand the increasing number of SNS-held products by threat and product type and how these products can supplement MCMs needed by states, tribal nations, territories, and the largest metropolitan areas during public health emergencies.
The webinar is for all federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial public health and emergency response partners that represent public health and emergency response stakeholders. The webinar is provisionally available for 45 days as a password-protected course on TRAIN.org. To register for this webinar via CDC TRAIN, interested participants must have a TRAIN account, which is available via http://train.org. To search and register for this webinar, enter the entire webinar title, “Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) Formulary,” or the course ID number, 1101179. Please use launch code Form22 to view the webinar.
Questions regarding TRAIN registration should be directed to dsnstrain@cdc.gov.
Long COVID & Fatiguing Illness Recovery Program Monthly Learning Sessions
Family Health Centers of San Diego, the ECHO Institute, the University of Washington, and the University of Colorado have collaborated to deliver CDC-funded, monthly learning sessions to rapidly disseminate Post-acute Sequelae of SARS-COV-2 infection (PASC) and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) findings and emerging promising practices. This large-scale, national webinar series will be held on the second Thursday of every month and will offer didactic presentations by subject matter experts, examples of emerging promising practices and models of care, and a facilitated question and answer (Q&A) period.
The program is open to all health care professionals and all Long COVID and ME/CFS patient-lived experience experts interested in learning more about the treatment of Long COVID and ME/CFS. One credit hour of Continuing Medical Education (CME), Continuing Nursing Education (CNE), and Continuing Professional Education (CPE) will be available to participants.
Upcoming Monthly Session
Thursday, January 13 from 1:00 – 2:00 PM ET
Register HERE
COVID-19 Clinical Rounds: A Peer-to-Peer Virtual Community of Practice
COVID-19 Clinical Rounds are resource webinars intended for consultant physicians involved in critical care practice, fellows, residents, pharmacists, nursing staff, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, respiratory therapists, and allied health staff. All previous recordings can be found on the HHS ASPR Project ECHO COVID-19 Clinical Rounds website.
Upcoming Clinical Rounds
Grand Rounds for EMS, Critical Care, and Emergency Department:
Update on Outpatient Therapeutics
Thursday, January 13 from 12:00 – 1:00 PM ET
Register HERE
CONTACT US
Email your coalition coordinators at HCCME@AllClearEMG.com to assist you with any of your preparedness needs.
As a reminder, we recommend that you bookmark our website MaineHCCs.com and check in often as we are continually updating the calendar with meetings, trainings, and exercises!