COCA Email Updates: December 29, 2014 – January 5, 2015

Available for download: January 05, 2015, COCA Email Update

COCA News and Announcements

Recent COCA Calls/Webinars:

Title: EMS and Ebola: Field Experience with Transporting Patients

Date:Monday, December 15, 2014

Title:  HIV Care Continuum: Keeping the Spotlight on Screening, Prevention, and Treatment

Date:Thursday, December 18, 2014

Additional COCA Conference Calls

Free continuing education credits (CME, CNE, ACPE, CEU, CECH, and AAVSB/RACE) are available for most calls. More information about free CE.

CDC Emergency Response – CDC Response to 2014 Ebola in the United States and West Africa

NEW:2014 Ebola Outbreak in West Africa - Cumulative Reported Cases Graphs

NEW:Considerations for U.S Healthcare Facilities to Ensure Adequate Supplies of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Ebola Preparedness

Updated:Case Counts

NEW:Interim Guidance for Ebola Virus Cleaning, Disinfection, and Waste Disposal in Commercial Passenger Aircraft

NEW:Questions and Answers about Ebola and Food Safety in the United States

NEW:2014 Ebola Outbreak in West Africa - Cumulative Reported Cases Graphs

NEW:Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on Interim Guidance for Managers and Workers Handling Untreated Sewage from Suspected or Confirmed Individuals with Ebola in the U.S.

CDC News and Announcements

CDC Science Clips: Volume 6, Issue: 51 – (CDC)

Each week select science clips are shared with the public health community to enhance awareness of emerging scientific knowledge. The focus is applied public health research and prevention science that has the capacity to improve health now.

Public Health Preparedness

Emergency Preparedness and Response - (CDC)

Find preparedness resources for all hazards.

Emergency Preparedness and Response Training Resources for Clinicians – (CDC)

Find online and in-person training resources.

Natural Disasters and Severe Weather

Food and Water Needs: Preparing for a Disaster or Emergency – (CDC)

Health and Safety Concerns for All Disasters – (CDC)

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

MMWR publications are prepared by CDC. Electronically Subscribe.

January 2, 2014 / Vol. 63 / No. 51 & 52 Download .pdf document of this issue

• Tetrodotoxin Poisoning Outbreak from Imported Dried Puffer Fish — Minneapolis, Minnesota, 2014
• Perceptions of the Risk for Ebola and Health Facility Use Among Health Workers and Pregnant and Lactating Women — Kenema District, Sierra Leone, September 2014
• Notes from the Field: Aseptic Meningitis Outbreak Associated with Echovirus 30 Among High School Football Players — Los Angeles County, California, 2014
• QuickStats: Death Rates from Viral Hepatitis Among Adults Aged ≥18 Years, by Age Group and Sex — National Vital Statistics System, United States, 1999–2011

Infectious, Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases

Seasonal Influenza

What You Should Know for the 2014-2015 Influenza Season

Information for Health Professionals

Weekly Flu View – December 29 (CDC)

Flu View is a weekly influenza surveillance report prepared by CDC Influenza Division. All data are preliminary and may change as CDC receives more reports.

Planning and Preparedness: Health Professionals and Seasonal Flu - (HHS)

Health care providers play an important role during flu season. The following guidance and information will assist health care providers and service organizations to plan and respond to seasonal flu.

Travel Safety

Current Travel Warnings - December 29 (US Department of State)

The U.S. Department of State issues Travel Warnings when long-term, protracted conditions make a country dangerous or unstable. Travel Warnings recommend that Americans avoid or carefully consider the risk of travel to that country. The State Department also issues Travel Warnings when the U.S. Government's ability to assist American citizens is constrained due to the closure of an embassy or consulate, or because of a drawdown of State Department staff.

Food, Drug and Device Safety

NEW: FDA Investigates Listeria monocytogenes Illnesses Linked to Caramel Apples– December 31 (FDA)

MedWatch: The FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program – (FDA)

MedWatch is your Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gateway for clinically important safety information and reporting serious problems with human medical products.

FoodSafety.gov Reports FDA and USDA Food Recalls, Alerts, Reporting & Resources – (HHS/USDA/FDA/CDC/NIH)

Foodsafety.gov lists notices of recalls and alerts from both FDA and USDA. Visitors to the site can report a problem or make inquiries.