Conduct outreach and education for county emergency management agencies on state animal disease response plans in order to provide top-down guidance on state plans and priorities, actionable…

The purpose of this $127,240 Cooperative Agreement award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) under the Plant and Animal Disease, Pest Control, and Animal Care program (CFDA 10.025) is to conduct outreach and education for county emergency management agencies on state animal disease response plans. The key activities include:

• Delivering presentations at multiple regional emergency management meetings and the annual state emergency management conference to provide top-down guidance on state plans and priorities, actionable planning and preparedness activities, and information on available training and education resources.
• Fostering interagency communication and coordination between the state Department of Agriculture, state Emergency Management Agency, the state land-grant university (Kansas State University), and local county emergency management agencies.
• Conducting pre- and post-presentation surveys to assess knowledge gained, identify future outreach topics, and evaluate the effectiveness of the outreach effort.

The project aims to improve understanding of state animal disease response plans and provide guidance on local agency involvement, ultimately enhancing overall capability when responding to an animal disease outbreak.

Conduct outreach and education for county emergency management agencies on state animal disease response plans in order to provide top-down guidance on state plans and priorities, actionable planning and preparedness activities at the county level, inform agencies of available training and education resources, and foster interagency communication and coordination. Presentations will be delivered at multiple regional emergency management meetings, as well as, the annual state emergency management conference. State and academic representatives will be available at a conference booth to provide additional information and resources. In addition to the presentations, beneficiaries will be provided educational handouts, posters, and online resources. Two surveys will be conducted, prior to and following the regional presentations, to assess the knowledge gained, identify topics for future outreach, and evaluate the effectiveness of the outreach effort. Survey findings will be presented in a report and consider the impact of sltt integration and coordination. The project will focus on county emergency management agencies, and will aim to improve understanding of state animal disease response plans and provide guidance on local agency involvement. The project will foster relationships between the state department of agriculture, state emergency management agency, the state land-grant university, and local county emergency management agencies. Enhanced interagency communication and coordination at state and local levels will improve overall capability when responding to an animal disease outbreak.