Informatics solutions for emergency planning and response.

Early informatics contributions to the emergency planning and response agenda have focused largely on surveillance of threat detection. A broader assessment of possible informatics contributions unveils that informatics can also contribute to increasing the efficiency in disaster response as well as providing a tele-presence for remote medical caregivers. This presentation will explore current and future roles of informatics in emergency preparedness and response. Special challenges for data management occur with every emergency or disaster. Tracking of victims, electronic health records, and supply inventory are a few of the contributions that informatics can play during disasters. Modeling of response resources can provide the parameters for more effective decision making. Public relations reporting can be made more accurate if given the information in a timely fashion. Databases provide the infrastructure for reporting of data that can be used to manage volunteers or later be mined to determine the effectiveness of planning and response efforts. As informaticists, we have a moral obligation to contribute to the emergency response agenda worldwide.