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Identifying and Prioritizing Information Needs and Research Priorities of Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Practitioners

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 March 2017

Alexa L. Siegfried ,
Eric G. Carbone ,
Michael B. Meit ,
Mallory J. Kennedy ,
Hussain Yusuf  and
Emily B. Kahn
Alexa L. Siegfried
Affiliation:
NORC at the University of Chicago, Bethesda, Maryland
Eric G. Carbone*
Affiliation:
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response, Atlanta, Georgia
Michael B. Meit
Affiliation:
NORC at the University of Chicago, Bethesda, Maryland
Mallory J. Kennedy
Affiliation:
NORC at the University of Chicago, Bethesda, Maryland
Hussain Yusuf
Affiliation:
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response, Atlanta, Georgia
Emily B. Kahn
Affiliation:
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response, Atlanta, Georgia
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Eric G. Carbone, PhD, MBA, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta GA 30329 (e-mail: [email protected]).
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Abstract

Objective

This study describes findings from an assessment conducted to identify perceived knowledge gaps, information needs, and research priorities among state, territorial, and local public health preparedness directors and coordinators related to public health emergency preparedness and response (PHPR). The goal of the study was to gather information that would be useful for ensuring that future funding for research and evaluation targets areas most critical for advancing public health practice.

Methods

We implemented a mixed-methods approach to identify and prioritize PHPR research questions. A web survey was sent to all state, city, and territorial health agencies funded through the Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) Cooperative Agreement program and a sample of local health departments (LHDs). Three focus groups of state and local practitioners and subject matter experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were subsequently conducted, followed by 3 meetings of an expert panel of PHPR practitioners and CDC experts to prioritize and refine the research questions.

Results

We identified a final list of 44 research questions that were deemed by study participants as priority topics where future research can inform PHPR programs and practice. We identified differences in perceived research priorities between PHEP awardees and LHD survey respondents; the number of research questions rated as important was greater among LHDs than among PHEP awardees (75%, n=33, compared to 24%, n=15).

Conclusions

The research questions identified provide insight into public health practitioners’ perceived knowledge gaps and the types of information that would be most useful for informing and advancing PHPR practice. The study also points to a higher level of information need among LHDs than among PHEP awardees. These findings are important for CDC and the PHPR research community to ensure that future research studies are responsive to practitioners’ needs and provide the information required to enhance their capacity to meet the needs of the communities and jurisdictions they serve. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2017;11:552–561)

Keywords

emergency preparednessresponseresearch prioritiespublic health capabilities
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 11 , Issue 5 , October 2017 , pp. 552 - 561
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2017 

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References

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