About the Office of Public Health Preparedness
Joseph W. Schmider, Acting Director
Mission
Lead the Commonwealth in preventing, responding to, and reducing the public health and medical consequences of emergencies and disasters.
Vision
A Commonwealth prepared to prevent, respond to, and reduce the public health and medical consequences of emergencies and disasters.
The Office of Public Health Preparedness (OPHP) is the coordinating office for public health preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation activities in the Commonwealth. OPHP functions as the Department of Health’s principle preparedness and response representative to all local, State and Federal entities, as well as private organizations, such as hospitals and other healthcare entities. OPHP coordinates preparedness and response planning, training, and exercise development and manages the Department’s response and recovery activities to the public health and medical consequences of natural or man-made disasters and emergencies.
This website is a one-stop preparedness resource center, with consistent, up-to-date information and tips to help Pennsylvanians prepare for a public health emergency.
About Us
The Office of Public Health Preparedness (OPHP) is responsible for providing direction, coordination and assessment of all activities that ensure state and local readiness, interagency collaboration and preparedness for the public health and medical consequences of all disasters and emergencies. The OPHP serves as the primary coordinating office within the Pennsylvania Department of Health and is charged with developing both internal and external processes to assure Pennsylvania ’s ability to respond in a coordinated manner, at all levels of decision-making, to public health threats.
The OPHP oversees the implementation of Public Health Emergency Preparedness Cooperative Agreements from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The OPHP ensures that there is a clear understanding and coordination of planning efforts across the grants and that there is no duplication of efforts or expenditures. To that end, the OPHP has instituted a Project Investment Analysis process to ensure that grant funds and programs are administered according to grant requirements and consistent with Commonwealth preparedness priorities. The OPHP ensures that state and local health departments, hospitals, and other health care entities are able to mount a unified, coordinated response with seamless interaction among all public health preparedness partners.
The OPHP manages the following major program initiatives:
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Disaster Volunteer Recruitment and Retention –
State Emergency Registry of Volunteers in Pennsylvania (SERVPA) www.serv.pa.gov
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Public Health Preparedness Education and Training (PA Prepared Learning Management System) www.paprepared.net
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Emergency Preparedness and Response Planning
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Preparedness and Response Exercises, Evaluation, and Lessons Learned
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Special Populations Emergency Planning
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Hospital and Healthsystem Preparedness
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Public Health System Preparedness
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