National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center

In the latest episode of the Transmission Interrupted podcast, Lauren Sauer and Dr. Jana Broadhurst discuss the current state of H5N1 wastewater testing and surveillance. Wastewater testing provides a critical, community-based surveillance tool for early detection and monitoring of infectious diseases, offering insights into viral circulation and mutations that may impact the effectiveness of existing tools to prevent, detect, and treat illnesses. Read the blog for the top 10 takeaways from the episode: https://ow.ly/JnNP50Uf6zw Podcast host Lauren Sauer is an Associate Professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Director of the Special Pathogens Research Network for NETEC. Her guest, Dr. Jana Broadhurst, MD, PhD, DTM&H, is an Associate Professor at the UNMC College of Medicine and medical director at the Nebraska Medicine Biocontainment Unit Clinical Laboratory. Listen to Transmission Interrupted on your favorite podcast platform and subscribe for more in-depth discussions on emerging pathogens and preparedness strategies. A new episode will be released on the first Wednesday of each month. #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #InfectiousDiseases #H5N1 #AvianInfluenza #BirdFlu #Wastewater Providence Cedars-Sinai Denver Health UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) Corewell Health University of Minnesota Medical Center Mass General Hospital NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE NYC Health + Hospitals Johns Hopkins Hospital MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital UNC Health Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta

NETEC faculty and Chief Biopreparedness Officer at NYC Health + Hospitals Syra Madad led a training exercise to simulate how to screen and isolate a “patient” with symptoms of avian influenza. The exercise included safely transporting the patient from NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County in Brooklyn to NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE in Manhattan. NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue is one of 13 HHS-designated Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Centers (RESPTCs) nationwide with the knowledge and experience to support collaborative and coordinated management of special pathogens. Learn more about the RESPTCs: https://lnkd.in/gMnWtA8d #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #AvianInfluenza #BirdFlu Massachusetts General Hospital Johns Hopkins Hospital MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital UNC Health Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Corewell Health University of Minnesota Medical Center UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) University of Nebraska Medical Center Nebraska Medicine Denver Health Cedars-Sinai Providence HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response

On November 16, 2024, the California Department of Health reported the first known case of clade 1 mpox in the United States. The person became infected after traveling to Eastern Africa, where there is an outbreak of clade 1 mpox. Clade I is known for more severe clinical manifestations compared to other clades, with a higher rate of transmission, increased virulence, and a greater potential for causing serious health complications. Remember to ask about recent travel and exposures in anyone presenting with a new rash! Check out the NETEC Mpox exhibit for more information: https://ow.ly/AAhH50Ucbav #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #Mpox #MPXV #IdentifyIsolateInform #NETECNugget Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta UNC Health MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital Johns Hopkins Hospital NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE NYC Health + Hospitals Mass General Hospital Corewell Health University of Minnesota Medical Center UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) University of Nebraska Medical Center Nebraska Medicine Denver Health Cedars-Sinai Providence HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response

Lauren Sauer, MSc, director of the Special Pathogens Research Network at NETEC from the University of Nebraska Medical Center/Global Center for Health Security , spoke to The Washington Post about the likelihood of clade 1 mpox spreading due to travel. The first case of this deadlier strain of mpox was reported in California over the weekend: https://ow.ly/GUCy50UaTwg NETEC provides free expert consultation, technical support, and resources for clinicians to safely and effectively care for patients suspected to be infected with mpox, including resources on PPE, specimen collection, infection prevention and waste management, and specialized guidance for EMS professionals, researchers, and more: https://ow.ly/6mV250UaTwf #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #Mpox #HealthCare Lena Sun Nebraska Medicine Denver Health Cedars-Sinai Providence UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) Corewell Health University of Minnesota Medical Center Mass General Hospital NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE NYC Health + Hospitals Johns Hopkins Hospital MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital UNC Health Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response

Shelly Schwedhelm, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, Executive Director of The National Special Pathogen System (NSPS) and Associate Director of Emergency Management and Clinical Operations at Global Center for Health Securityand Darrell Ruby, CEM, Regional Coordinator at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital (PSHMC&CH) (Providence), and co-chair of NETEC's Emergency Management workgroup co-authored an article in the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) Bulletin newsletter: https://ow.ly/4nzO50Uar5W. Article starts on page 24. Recent health care crises like the COVID-19 pandemic, the international Marburg and Sudan Ebola Virus Disease outbreaks, and H5N1 (avian influenza) demonstrate the unpredictable nature of special pathogen outbreaks and underscore the need for an agile and robust system for preparedness and response. The article in IAEM Bulletin describes how the NSPS offers a national strategy for approaching preparedness and response to special pathogens to save lives and protect communities and the health care workforce. Through strong partnerships, strategic guidance, and tiered facility support, the NSPS boosts emergency response capability nationwide.Learn how NSPS is protecting patients, communities, and health care workers, and shaping the future of pathogen preparedness: https://ow.ly/oIHP50Uar5X #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #InfectiousDiseases #EmergencyManagement #IAEM24 #IAEM #COVID19 #H5N1 #BirdFlu #Ebola #MarburgVirus Cedars-Sinai Denver Health University of Nebraska Medical Center Nebraska Medicine UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) Corewell Health University of Minnesota Medical Center Mass General Hospital NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE NYC Health + Hospitals Johns Hopkins Hospital MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital UNC Health Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response

Darrell Ruby, CEM, Regional Coordinator at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital (PSHMC&CH) (Providence), and co-chair of NETEC's Emergency Management workgroup presented at the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) Annual Conference on November 18, 2024. The presentation, "Regional and National Special Pathogen Preparedness: Collaboration, Coordination and Cooperation" focused on The National Special Pathogen System (NSPS) and how PSHMC&CH leveraged regional relationships and a national partner to assess and refine systems, protocols, and partnerships critical to Region 10 special pathogen preparedness and response. Learn more about the NSPS: https://ow.ly/hiUx50U9vTc Photos: Darrell presenting at IAEM; Mary Brown, Director of Emergency Management at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Darrell, and Bill Neville, Emergency Management Coordinator at Denver Health. PSHM&CH, Johns Hopkins Hospital, and Denver Health and Hospital Authority are three of the 13 HHS-designated Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Centers (RESPTCs) nationwide with the knowledge and experience to support collaborative and coordinated management of special pathogens. Learn more about the RESPTCs: https://ow.ly/4bbe50U9vTb #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #InfectiousDiseases #EmergencyManagement #IAEM24 #IAEM Cedars-Sinai University of Nebraska Medical Center Nebraska Medicine UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) University of Minnesota Medical Center Corewell Health Mass General Hospital NYC Health + Hospitals NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital UNC Health Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response

Japan's Infectious Disease Emergency Specialist (IDES) training program, initiated after the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak, equips infectious disease emergency specialists with the skills and knowledge needed to effectively respond to health emergencies. In 2022, IDES sent a trainee to NETEC to facilitate the sharing of best practices, experiences, and expertise in handling special pathogens and other emerging diseases in Japanese and U.S. health care institutions. A Health Security journal article describes the partnership between the IDES training program and NETEC, and advocates for embedding visiting faculty within partner systems to advance international coordination and best practices for special pathogen readiness and response. "Strengthening International Collaboration for Global Health Security: The Role of the Infectious Disease Emergency Specialist Training Program and NETEC Partnership" was written by Hiromi Hibino, Jocelyn J. Herstein (Global Center for Health Security/ University of Nebraska Medical Center) Katie L. Stern (UNMC), Yukimasa Matsuzawa, Shinichiro Moroika, Jun Sugihara, Teiji Takei, Norio Omagari, Adam Tewell, Richard C. Hunt (HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response ) Vikramjit Mukherjee (NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE) and John J. Lowe (Global Center for Health Security / UNMC). Published online on September 11, 2024, this article is part of a Special Issue that features 14 manuscripts and an introduction to the series by NETEC's International Partnerships and Programs Director, Jocelyn Herstein from the University of Nebraska Medical Center (@iamunmc), and global peers. Read the article: https://ow.ly/K9cp50U8hrr Photo: John Lowe, Jocelyn Herstein, Hiromi Hibino, and Vikram Mukherjee, at an International Transport Tabletop Exercise in San Francisco. #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #HCID #GlobalHealth #InfectiousDisease #IDESProgram Providence Cedars-Sinai Denver Health Nebraska Medicine UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) Corewell Health University of Minnesota Medical Center Mass General Hospital NYC Health + Hospitals Johns Hopkins Hospital MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital UNC Health Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta

Earn continuing education credit with our free online course: "National Special Pathogen System (NSPS): Path to Preparedness"! Discover how The National Special Pathogen System (NSPS) framework empowers health care entities across the 10 Health and Human Services regions in the U.S. to effectively monitor pathogens, respond to outbreaks, and safeguard patients, health care workers, and communities. This course also delves into real-world applications, showcasing how health care facilities and public health organizations leverage partnerships and strategies to strengthen their region's preparedness. Don't miss this opportunity—enroll today and learn more about the NSPS: https://ow.ly/lGJj50U7kjA #NSPS #NETEC #SpecialPathogens #HealthCare There are 13 Level 1 Regional Treatment Centers or RESPTCs in the NSPS System of Care that serve as resource hubs in their regions, providing highly specialized care delivery to patients suspected to be or infected with a special pathogen. They include UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) Corewell Health University of Minnesota Medical Center Mass General Hospital NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE NYC Health + Hospitals Johns Hopkins Hospital MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital UNC Health Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta University of Nebraska Medical Center Nebraska Medicine Denver Health Cedars-Sinai Providence

Darrell Ruby, CEM, Regional Coordinator at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital (PSHMC&CH), and co-chair of NETEC's Emergency Management workgroup is presenting "Regional and National Special Pathogen Preparedness: Collaboration, Coordination and Cooperation" at the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) 72nd Annual Conference on Monday, November 18, at 9:45 a.m. MST. See the schedule: https://ow.ly/ghyW50U6r2m If you’re attending the IAEM Conference, join this presentation to learn about the The National Special Pathogen System (NSPS) and how PSHMC&CH leveraged regional relationships and a national partner to assess and refine systems, protocols, and partnerships critical to Region 10 special pathogen preparedness and response. As the HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response designated Region 10 Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Center (RESPTC), PSHMC&CH is among 13 RESPTCs nationwide with the knowledge and experience to support collaborative and coordinated management of special pathogens. During a multi-day exercise, PSHMC&CH partnered with the Region 7 RESPTC at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) and the Global Center for Health Security(GCHS) to deliver frontline special pathogen preparedness training in Alaska. The event featured a simulation of a patient suspected to be infected with a high-consequence infectious disease that had to be transported via ground and fixed-wing transport from Fairbanks to Anchorage, Alaska, and ending at PSCHC&CH in Spokane, Washington. The field exercise utilized a revolutionary portable negative pressure containment patient care system, Isolation System for Treatment and Agile Response for High-Risk Infections (ISTARI) in development at UNMC. #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #InfectiousDiseases #ISTARI #IAEM #IAEM24 Photo: LifeMed Alaska and Life Flight Network partnered with PSHMC&CH and UNMC for the exercise. Cedars-Sinai Denver Health Nebraska Medicine UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) Corewell Health University of Minnesota Medical Center Mass General Hospital NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE NYC Health + Hospitals Johns Hopkins Hospital MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital UNC Health Emory University Children's Healthcare of Atlanta

The Region 10 Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Center (RESPTC) at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children’s Hospital (PSHMC&CH) (Providence) sponsored and coordinated a NETEC EMS Biosafety training over two days at American Medical Response Seattle on September 26-27, 2024. The training was led by Dr. Alex Isakov and Wade Miles from Emory University who co-chair the NETEC EMS Workgroup, and Ben Tysor from Omaha Fire and EMS who is a NETEC EMS subject matter expert. Over two days, EMS personnel participated in classroom education and hands-on training covering donning and doffing EMS PPE, skills training related to draping/protecting the ambulance, spills clean-up, PPE breaches, health care worker down scenarios, and much more. This training is the foundation for developing regionally designated EMS teams to support patient transport in Region 10, which includes Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. In addition to supporting EMS agencies from Region 10, the British Columbia Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) EMS team from Vancouver, British Columbia, sent two of their EMS educators to attend the training and continue the ongoing partnership between the Region 10 RESPTC and the British Columbia Biocontainment Team. PSHMC&CH is one of 13 Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Centers (RESPTCs) with the knowledge and experience to support collaborative and coordinated management of special pathogens. Learn more about the RESPTCs: https://ow.ly/qFT450U58Iz #NETEC #NSPS #SpecialPathogens #Biosafety #EMS #PPE #HealthCare Provincial Health Services Authority Children's Healthcare of Atlanta UNC Health MedStar Washington Hospital Center Children's National Hospital Johns Hopkins Hospital NYC HEALTH+HOSPITALS | BELLEVUE NYC Health + Hospitals Mass General Hospital UTMB Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, & Education (SPECTRE) University of Minnesota Medical Center Corewell Health University of Nebraska Medical Center Nebraska Medicine Denver Health Cedars-Sinai HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response