Crisis Standards of Care: A Systems Framework for Catastrophic Disaster Response
The Institute of Medicine has revisited its 2009 Crisis Standards of Care in this just-released report, which provides a guide for implementing special healthcare standards for use during catastrophes. The seven-volume set will include planning recommendations for state and local governments, emergency medical services, and hospitals and care facilities. Standards for out-of-hospital and alternate care during large-scale emergencies are also included.
Missouri Storm Aware
After a wave of tornadoes leveled Joplin last spring and left hundreds dead, much was made about the ineffectiveness of tornado sirens and lack of good shelter options. This spring, the state of Missouri is getting ahead of the game with a website that offers residents great information on what to do in a storm. The site, created in conjunction with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service, dispels myths, offers life-saving facts, and tells users where to take cover when a tornado is on the way. Missourians can sign up for severe weather alerts delivered by text message to their mobile devices.
Disaster Information for Librarians
Don’t let the name fool you—this wiki goes far beyond helping those of librarian ilk. If you’ve ever needed or think you might need to quickly access disaster health information of any kind, this is your site. Created as part of HLWIKI Canada, a University of British Columbia resource for health librarians, the aim of the page is to help librarians working in disaster response. But with links to apps, RSS feeds, articles, journals, literature reviews, professional associations, widgets, e-mail lists, and much, much more, you’d be hard pressed not to find something useful.
Wind Map
This beautiful conceptualization uses wind data to weave art from science. Created by visualization specialists Fernanda Viegas and Martin Wattenberg, the map uses information from the National Digital Forecast Database to create a “living portrait” of the wind blowing through our world. Although the artists warn not to use the map to fight wildfires or fly planes, it is a lovely tool for getting a better understanding of wind movement.
Pacific Northwest Tsunami Evacuation Zones
Tsunami watchers in Washington and Oregon now have a new tool to help keep them abreast of tsunami threats. Developed by the Northwest Association of Networked Ocean Observing Systems, the website and similar smartphone apps display customizable maps of tsunami threats, evacuation zones by region and city, and incorporate a slew of preparedness information. Site visitors can also create an account and have alerts for their area sent directly to their device.
Public Library of Science Currents: Disasters
The Public Library of Science, a nonprofit organization that supports research sharing and open access publishing, has just launched a publishing system for disaster research works. The system allows researchers to contribute works directly to the system, which are then peer-reviewed and published under a Creative Commons license that allows them to be read and freely used. A versioning process allows articles to be updated, as well.