Let’s get our preparedness on at #APHA15!

Getting excited for APHA’s Annual Meeting in Chicago this month? So are we! The 143rd Annual Meeting and Exposition, which will be held Oct. 31-Nov. 4, will be packed with public health information, including our favorite topic: preparedness!

The Annual Meeting program, which you can scope out online now, is full of presentations on disaster planning, response and readiness. From household preparedness and community partnerships to disease outbreaks and nuclear disasters, there’ll be plenty to feed your hunger for preparedness.

Some of our top preparedness picks at the meeting include:

• “Strengthening Disaster Epidemiology Capacity in the Nation: Update on Tools and Approaches,” which will look at the ways epidemiology is used in disaster settings;
• “Protecting Disaster Response Workers: Turning Lessons Learned into Actions,” which will examine how mental health training, apps and disaster research can benefit responders;
• “Health Care Perspective on Disaster Response and Preparedness,” which will explore earthquake preparedness, pediatric planning and post-hurricane health services; 
• “Disaster Response and Emergency Preparedness,” which will include discussions on pregnant women, Ebola communications and NATO summit preparedness; and 
• “Research Perspectives on Trauma: Mitigating the Impact of Natural Disasters and War on Survivors,” which will feature presentations on service dogs and housing stability for disaster survivors.

Once you’ve had your fill of preparedness presentations — as if that’s even possible! — head on over to our Get Ready booth at the expo. We’ll be passing out free copies of our awesome 2016 calendar, featuring adorable animals and preparedness advice. We’ll also have fact sheets and other tools that you can use in your job and community — as well as some super cool preparedness giveaways. Look for us in the APHA area of the expo, at booth 1429-10E.

If you want to meet some of the fine folks behind the Get Ready campaign - including staff who work on the @GetReady Twitter, blog and website — stop by our Social Media Meetup on Sunday at 6 p.m.

And don’t forget that while you’re at the Annual Meeting, it’s important to network like a boss — with clean hands that don’t spread disease.

If you can’t attend all of these great sessions plus the hundreds of other sessions you want to attend, you can take home the Annual Meeting by purchasing RAMP: Recorded Annual Meeting Presentations. RAMP gives you flexibility to take in sessions or events on-site without the fear of missing a presentation. Stop by any registration desk to purchase RAMP.
See you in Chicago!