PURPOSE OF THE PANDEMIC INFLUENZA SUMMIT
Governor Ted Kulongoski is convening Oregon's first Pandemic Influenza Summit, together with US Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt, to promote awareness of Oregon's pandemic flu preparedness efforts to date, to improve understanding of the roles of federal, state and local public health agencies and first responders in protecting the public's health and safety if and when a pandemic occurs, and to urge all Oregonians to take steps that will lessen the impact of a flu pandemic on themselves and their families.
The Summit will bring together state and federal leaders who have important roles in ensuring that the state of Oregon has an effective system for responding to an influenza pandemic or similar large-scale disease outbreak. Attendees will include leaders from public health, hospital, healthcare, emergency management, education, business and community organizations, as well as state and federal officials from a number of offices and agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security.
Governor Kulongoski and Secretary Leavitt will present an overview of state and federal preparedness accomplishments, plans and future goals. They will also provide concrete guidance to individuals and families, businesses, school districts and non-profit organizations about what they can do today to prepare for an influenza pandemic. The latter half of the Summit will include a discussion by an expert panel, including representatives of federal, state and local government as well as the medical community, each of whom will outline their roles in preparing for and responding to a disease outbreak and discuss what citizens can and cannot expect from different organizations in the event of a pandemic.
At the conclusion of the Summit, each individual and organization represented will be encouraged to develop their own response plan and to test it, steps that will not only improve their preparedness, but Oregon's preparedness as a whole.
Print version: Purpose of the Summit (pdf)
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