Public Health Emergency Preparedness Program
Christopher Edgerly, EPR Manager

MAILING ADDRESS:
700 Mountain Ranch Road
Suite C-2
San Andreas, CA 95249
Get Directions
PHONE: (209) 754-6460
Mon - Fri: 8am - 5pm
Closed Weekends & Holidays

Emergency Preparedness

The health and safety of everyone in Calaveras County is our main priority. Our Public Health Emergency Preparedness team works to protect our community before, during, and after emergencies that could affect people's health.

We are part of California's organized emergency response system. This system divides emergency responsibilities into 18 different Emergency Support Functions (ESFs), where each function handles specific emergency response duties. Our team is designated as Emergency Support Function #8 (ESF #8), which means we're officially responsible for coordinating all health and medical services during emergencies.

Think of ESFs as different teams in an emergency response playbook. While some teams handle things like transportation or firefighting, our team (ESF #8) is responsible for coordinating these activities:

  • Getting medical care to people who need it
  • Protecting public health (like making sure water is safe to drink)
  • Managing medical supplies and equipment
  • Supporting mental health needs
  • Helping people with special medical needs
  • Monitoring environmental health hazards
  • Working with emergency medical services (ambulances)
  • Giving presentations to help community members prepare
  • Conducting training sessions for healthcare workers
  • Running emergency response drills and exercises
  • Holding regular planning meetings
  • Keeping emergency plans updated
  • Ensuring we have emergency supplies and equipment ready

To do this work effectively, we partner with many organizations throughout our community:

  • Local government agencies
  • Other public health departments
  • Schools and colleges
  • Community organizations
  • Hospitals, clinics, and doctor's offices
  • Nursing homes and long-term care facilities
  • Emergency medical services
  • Fire departments
  • Mental health services
  • Environmental health services

Our Grant-Funded Programs

We use three main grants to help keep our community safe and healthy:

Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP)

Since 2002, this national program has helped public health departments across the country get ready for emergencies. This program provides important funding that helps us:

Prepare for many types of emergencies:

  • Disease outbreaks (like COVID-19 or flu)
  • Natural disasters (like wildfires or floods)
  • Biological incidents
  • Chemical incidents
  • Nuclear or radiological events
  • Other public health threats

This funding helps us:

  • Create emergency plans that can change based on the situation
  • Train our local health department staff
  • Get emergency supplies and equipment ready
  • Work closely with other emergency agencies
  • Practice responding to different types of emergencies
  • Keep our emergency plans up-to-date
  • Make sure we can act quickly when emergencies happen

Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP)

This program helps our local healthcare system - including hospitals, clinics, and nursing homes - work together during big emergencies. Through HPP, we:

Provide Leadership and Funding:

  • Help healthcare facilities prepare for emergencies
  • Create guidelines for emergency planning
  • Support training and exercises
  • Provide resources for emergency response

Build Healthcare Coalitions:

  • Bring together healthcare organizations that might normally compete
  • Help different healthcare groups work together
  • Encourage sharing of resources and information
  • Build partnerships before emergencies happen
  • Support training exercises that prepare healthcare workers
  • Help healthcare organizations handle all types of emergencies

Pandemic Flu Preparedness

This program specifically helps us get ready for disease outbreaks in Calaveras County. The funding supports PHEP and HPP goals while helping us:

Plan Ahead:

  • Create plans for giving vaccines to many people quickly
  • Prepare to respond to any size disease outbreak
  • Make sure we can reach everyone in our community
  • Have systems ready to give out medicine and vaccines
  • Work with doctors, clinics, and pharmacies

Stay Ready:

  • Keep our medical supplies updated
  • Train staff on the latest response methods
  • Practice our emergency plans regularly
  • Work with other counties and the state
  • Learn from each experience to improve our plans
  • Expand our planning, training, and testing of mass vaccination responses

How You Can Help

Building a Stronger Calaveras County

We're working to make our community better prepared for emergencies. Here's how you can help:

Learn and Prepare:

  • Know what emergencies might happen in your area
  • Make an emergency plan with your family
  • Build an emergency supply kit
  • Sign up for emergency alerts
  • Learn basic first aid
  • Know your evacuation zone

Get Involved:

  • Join our healthcare coalitions
  • Become a volunteer
  • Share emergency preparedness information with neighbors
  • Attend community preparedness events
  • Help spread the word about emergency readiness

Remember: Emergency preparedness starts with each of us. Together, we can make Calaveras County a safer and more prepared community.

Resources

Get Involved

Disaster Healthcare Volunteer

14 November 2022

Disaster Healthcare Volunteer

 Disaster Healthcare Volunteer’s Resource Page: https://emsa.ca.gov/Disaster-Healthcare-Volunteers/ 

Medical Reserve Corps

14 November 2022

Medical Reserve Corps

Make a difference in your community. Become a volunteer to improve the health and safety of your community. Join a local MRC unit.

Go to the website https://healthcarevolunteers.ca.gov/ .

Click the Red button “Register Now”, this will take you to the form to fill out.

At the top of the form click “+Add Organizations”.

Select “Medical Reserve Corps Volunteer Organizations”.

From the list select “Calaveras County Medical Reserve Corps”.

Click “Select” in the lower right corner.

Fill out the rest of the form with your information.