July 17, 2019
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Healthcare Facilities Preparedness 
 
Many universities are integrated with robust healthcare facilities on campus. Some examples include the University of Alabama Hospital at Birmingham, University Medical Center at Princeton, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and the University of Vermont Medical Center. These medical centers serve the needs of patients and their families 24 hours a day, seven days a week and need to maintain a continuity of care and operations no matter the circumstances. Because of this "duty-to-care" commitment, hospitals and healthcare facilities face unique challenges when planning and responding to critical incidents.
 
A survey of more than 300 respondents conducted by Rave Mobile Safety found a significant difference in what healthcare facilities believe are their top safety concerns and the reality of what actual incidents are most likely to occur. Survey participants noted that their top incident concerns are:
  • Severe weather (36 percent)
  • Active shooters (34 percent)
  • Cyberattacks (32 percent)
The most common actual incidents are:
  • System outages (54 percent): 32 percent who experienced outages said their facility had never run a drill.
  • Weather events (52 percent): approximately half of respondents noted they had experienced a dangerous weather-related event within the past two years and 51 percent reported that their facility had gone more than one year without testing their weather-related emergency operating plans.
  • Workplace violence (27 percent)
However, 60 percent of respondents stated that fire drills are conducted every quarter despite only 18 percent reporting a fire having occurred within the past two years. Although fire drills still remain an important cornerstone of safety, this discrepancy between actual incidents occurring and those prepared for is a growing concern.
 
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has confirmed that between 2000-2017, hundreds of hospital-related shootings took place, yet 33 percent of survey respondents had never run workplace violence drills. Further, 25 percent who had experienced workplace violence had no method to report tips anonymously to their employer. DHS developed Hospital and Healthcare Facilities: Security Awareness for Soft Targets and Crowded Places(PDF), an action guide to help medical facilities identify potential warning signs of violence and proactive steps to prepare in case of an active shooter.

The Miami-Dade County Healthcare Preparedness Coalition has compiled emergency preparedness resources for active shooters, hurricanes, and health/healthcare facilities. In addition, the Joint Counterterrorism Assessment Team has included the Complex Operating Environment - Healthcare Facilities (PDF) as part of its First Responders Toolbox. This document highlights different areas of a medical facility and why they may need additional planning and response considerations. It also includes pre-incident planning and coordination, critical facility functions, communications, and additional materials.
 
Most importantly, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) launched the Technical Resources, Assistance Center, and Information Exchange (TRACIE) two years ago. TRACIE was developed to meet the information and technical assistance needs of regional ASPR staff, healthcare coalitions, healthcare entities, healthcare providers, emergency managers, public health practitioners, and others working in disaster medicine, healthcare system preparedness, and public health emergency preparedness. The technical resources section in particular contains information on workplace violence, family reunification, cybersecurity, evacuations, and much more. For more information on TRACIE or the ASPR, please view the fact sheet (PDF).

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Register Today for Next Week's 90-Minute Clery Act Tips Webinar
 
On Tuesday, July 23 at 2 PM ET,welcomes Clery Act experts Laura Egan, senior director of programs for the Clery Center;  Steven Healy, chief executive officer of Margolis Healy; and James Moore, Clery Act senior advisor for the U.S. Department of Education Compliance and Campus Safety Operations; to present Just in Time: Clery Act Tips Before Fall 2019 .
 
Laura, Steven, and James will share their experiences and perspectives regarding the most critical issues in Clery Act compliance, with particular focus on those requirements related directly to Annual Security Reports and Annual Fire Safety Reports. Presenters will cover areas such as the policy and procedure requirements, distribution processes and notices, and challenges related to collecting and classifying crimes. There will be ample time for Q&A breaks during this special
90-minute webinar.
 
This webinar is appropriate for senior administrators, campus safety and security officers/law enforcement, emergency managers, and any other audiences that may be involved in Clery compliance on campus.
 
For more information and to register, please visit our website .

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Alcohol and Drug Misuse, Suicide, and Millennials

In June, Trust for America's Health (TFAH), a nonprofit, nonpartisan public health policy, research, and advocacy organization, and the Well Being Trust (WBT), a national foundation dedicated to advancing the mental, social, and spiritual health of the nation, released an issue brief, Alcohol and Drug Misuse and Suicide and the Millennial Generation - A Devastating Report (PDF). TFAH and WBT have called for immediate and sustained attention and investment in a national resilience strategy to address the rising death toll of Americans from alcohol- and drug-induced fatalities and suicide. In 2017, more than 152,000 died, the highest number ever recorded from alcohol and drug misuse and more than twice as many as in 1999. The impact on people in their 20s and 30s has been the most pronounced, rising 400 percent during the past two decades primarily fueled by the opioid epidemic.

This report focuses on the four areas related to alcohol and drug use and suicide faced by millennials, typically defined as those born between 1981 and 1996:
  • Risk and resilience factors;
  • Access to health insurance and quality mental health and substance use disorder care and services;
  • The multigenerational impact of alcohol, drugs, and suicide; and
  • The criminal justice system.
Young adults, ages 18 to 25, have the largest proportion of substance misuse of any age group, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). SAMHSA reports that in 2017, 56.3 percent of those 18 to 25 were current alcohol users according to the Key Substance Use and Mental Health Indicators in the United States: Results from the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health . Further, 24 percent of this same age group used illicit drugs in 2017, and 7.3 percent misused opioids in 2017.
 
The TFAH and WBT report emphasizes the important role of schools and institutions of higher education (IHEs) in promoting the well-being of students. School, college, and university personnel should be well-trained to identify and address their students' mental health needs. The NCCPS has written on mental health gaps and new initiatives taken by IHEs in previous Weekly Snapshot articles addressing mental health.
 
In summary, TFAH and WBT compiled key recommendations to establish programs and advance policies that address many of the root causes of substance use disorders and mental health issues for young adults.
 
For additional resources on this topic, please visit our online library and use the search tag "alcohol and substance abuse."

Professional Development Opportunities

Title: Developmentally Informed and Trauma-Informed Police Officer 
Organization: International Association of Chiefs of Police and Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention 
Date: July 30, 2019 
Location: Online
Fee: Free
 
Title: Women in Law Enforcement: Navigating Police Culture 
Organization: Justice Clearinghouse 
Dates: August 28, 2019
Location: Online
Fee: Free
 
Title: Legal Issues in Higher Education Conference 
Organization: University of Vermont 
Date: October 14-19, 2019  
Location: Burlington, VT 
Fee: Registration fee

For additional trainings and events, access our searchable online calendar

Virtual Professional Development
Through our Virtual Professional Development initiative, you can access free, online educational opportunities.
webinar
Free Archived Webinars
View on-demand, closed captioned webinar recordings on a variety of campus safety topics.
Emerging Issues Forum Reports
Download, print, and share findings from critical issues forums of campus public safety leaders, subject matter experts, and practitioners.

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This project was supported by Grant No. 2013-MU-BX-K011 awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Office for Victims of Crime, and the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking. Points of view or opinions in this document are those of author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the US Department of Justice.
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