Integrating public health and medical intelligence gathering into homeland security fusion centres
Abstract
Homeland security fusion centres serve to gather, analyse and share threat-related information among all levels of governments and law enforcement agencies. In order to function effectively, fusion centres must employ people with the necessary competencies to understand the nature of the threat facing a community, discriminate between important information and irrelevant or merely interesting facts and apply domain knowledge to interpret the results to obviate or reduce the existing danger. Public health and medical sector personnel routinely gather, analyse and relay health-related informÂation, including health security risks, associated with the detection of suspicious biological or chemical agents within a community to law enforcement agencies. This paper provides a rationale for the integration of public health and medical personnel in fusion centres and describes their role in assisting law enforcement agencies, public health organisations and the medical sector to respond to natural or intentional threats against local communities, states or the nation as a whole.
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Author's Biography
Joseph Albanese received his PhD from McGill University, Department of Medicine, in 1998. Currently, Dr. Albanese serves as the Radiation Biodosimetrist for the Yale New Haven Health System Center for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response (YNHHS-CEPDR) and the State of Connecticut. Joseph is an experienced research investigator who holds an appointment at Yale University School of Medicine, Department of Therapeutic Radiology.
James Paturas is the Deputy Director for the Yale New Haven Center for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response, with over 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry. He is also Associate Director for the International Collaborating Center for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response. As the Director of Ambulatory Development and Emergency Medical Services for Bridgeport Hospital for over 20 years, he served as the chairman of the hospital’s emergency management committee. He is the Past President of the American College of Contingency Planners and Past President of the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians. Mr Paturas currently serves on the editorial advisory boards of the Journal of Business Continuity & Emergency Planning and Inside Homeland Security. He is also a Certified Emergency Manager and Fellow of the American College of Contingency Planners.
Citation
Lenart, Brienne, Albanese, Joseph, Halstead, William, Schlegelmilch, Jeffrey and Paturas, James (2013, January 1). Integrating public health and medical intelligence gathering into homeland security fusion centres. In the Journal of Business Continuity & Emergency Planning, Volume 6, Issue 2. https://doi.org/10.69554/GPDM1559.
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