Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER): An Innovative Emergency Management Tool in the United States.
Objectives. To demonstrate how inclusion of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER) as a tool in Public Health Preparedness Capabilities: National Standards for State and Local Planning can increase public health capacity for emergency response. Methods. We reviewed all domestic CASPER activities (i.e., trainings and assessments) between fiscal years 2012 and 2016. Data from these CASPER activities were compared with respect to differences in geographic distribution, type, actions, efficacy, and usefulness of training. Results. During the study period, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted 24 domestic in-person CASPER trainings for 1057 staff in 38 states. On average, there was a marked increase in knowledge of CASPER. Ninety-nine CASPERs were conducted in the United States, approximately half of which (53.5%) assessed preparedness; the others were categorized as response or recovery (27.2%) or were unrelated to a disaster (19.2%). Conclusions. CASPER trainings are successful in increasing disaster epidemiology skills. CASPER can be used by Public Health Emergency Preparedness program awardees to help build and sustain preparedness and response capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]/nCopyright of American Journal of Public Health is the property of American Public Health Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Statistical analysis was done in MS Excel 2010. The authors compared data on all CASPERs and trainings conducted from 2012 through 2016 with respect to differences in geographic distribution, type of activity, and results or actions taken by decision-makers. They only included in-person, domestic CASPER training sessions that were not a part of a CASPER assessment; international, Webinar, and “just-in-time” trainings were excluded.
Review of CASPER Activities
Evaluation of CASPER trainings and usefulness of CASPER assessments
Data from these CASPER activities were compared with respect to differences in geographic distribution, type, actions, efficacy, and usefulness of trainingThe authors received all domestic CASPER activities (i.e. trainings and assessments) occurring between fiscal year 2012 and 2016.
To demonstrate how the use of CASPER, as a tool for community recovery and mass care, can increase state and local public health capacity for emergency response.
CASPER trainings are successful in increasing disaster epidemiology skills. CASPER can be used by Public Health Emergency Preparedness program awardees to help build and sustain preparedness and response capabilities.CASPER is an effective and frequently employed tool for public health emergency managementThe use of CASPER as a public health emergency preparedness and response tool can increase state and local public health emergency response capacities.Although originally designed for disaster response, CASPERs can be used throughout the disaster life cycle and in nondisaster situations, and they can can contribute to informing jurisdictional assessmentsSome areas have been indentified for future improvementThe majority (80.0%) of CASPERs did not document implementation of recommendations based on CASPER findings.Disseminating CASPER findings and sharing lessons learned with the wider public health community are important to highlight common problems and opportunities for improvement that exist across many communities
During the study period, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted 24 domestic in-person CASPER trainings for over 1000 staff in 38 states of the US. On average, there was a marked increase in knowledge of CASPER. 99 CASPERs were conducted in the US, 53.5% of which assessed preparedness; the others were categorized as response or recovery (27.2%) or were unrelated to a disaster (19.2%)
To demonstrate how inclusion of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention´s Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER) as a tool in Public Health Preparedness Capabilities: National Standards for State and Local Planning can increase public health capacity for emergency response
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