Emergency Preparedness and the Development of Health Care Coalitions: A Dynamic Process

Health care emergency preparedness has undergone significant changes since the first widespread distribution of federal funds occurred in 2002. Prior to the development of the Health Resources and Service Administration Bioterrorism Preparedness grant, support to hospitals and public health was limited to smaller regional preparedness programs such as the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program. Measurable progress with both the hospital preparedness program and public health emergency preparedness requires development of partnerships, establishment of coalitions, development of measurable objectives, and a community willingness to work together to solve complex preparedness problems.