Jennifer Horney, professor and founding director of the epidemiology program in the College of Health Sciences and core faculty with the DRC, is working alongside James Kendra, director of UD’s DRC and professor of public policy and administration in the Joseph R. Biden School of Public Policy and Administration, to identify evidence-based strategies and interventions to improve workforce capacity and willingness to serve amid a disaster in Region 3. 

“This marks the CDC’s first substantial investment in public health emergency preparedness in a decade,” Horney said. “This rebirth comes amid a post-COVID realization that halting that funding in 2014 made us vulnerable.” 

Horney points to turnover in the workforce and emerging and reemerging diseases as constant threats.

“Research has shown that children born in 2020 will face disproportionate increases in droughts, heatwaves and floods compared to their grandparents born in 1960,” Horney said. “The risks constantly change, and we must continually invest to stay prepared.” 

Training the trainer

The work in Region 3 includes online “train the trainer” courses and cross-training of public health staff to work in various roles during an emergency. 

“We want to create a workforce that is more ready and willing to respond to emergencies,” Horney said. 

Core focus areas will be communication and community engagement; coordination across agencies, community organizations and systems; and workforce recruitment, retention and competencies growth. 

Staff will also receive training in essential public health services, including assessment, surveillance, data analysis and evaluation.  

“If we ask them to conduct a rapid assessment, but they can’t develop an intervention or evaluate it, we aren’t doing anything actionable,” Horney said. “We must ensure people understand the objective of the work they’re being cross-trained to do.”  

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many public health workers left roles in chronic disease management, evaluation and health education to take on roles in communicable disease investigation. Still, they feared for their safety and the safety of their families. As the pandemic dragged on and burnout set in, public health work became more difficult.

“These courses will help public health staff know that if they come to work, they’ll be safe, and their families will be safe,” Horney said. “Having confidence in personal and organizational planning, awareness that their job might change in an emergency, and knowing they possess the skills to perform the job, are key to a successful disaster response.”

This surge capacity model is most effective in a time-limited response during a disaster or outbreak, as opposed to an indefinite response, as seen with COVID-19.

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health staff were forced to drop all other aspects of their jobs,” Horney said. “That’s not sustainable.” 

The future workforce

Cassie Richards, who’s pursuing her doctorate in sociology, came to UD for the DRC. She developed an interest in disaster response after traveling to Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria.

“We must lean into the idea of preparedness and bolstering public health workforces before the next pandemic or disaster occurs,” Richards said. 

She also hopes this disaster preparedness grant will increase job satisfaction for public health workers.

“I hope we can create a system that helps public health workers feel supported, improves retention, and develops their skills in a way that improves their quality of life on the job because that will, in turn, improve public health,” Richards said. 

Horney hopes the cross-training inspires young professionals like Richards to pursue careers in public health. Horney was lured into emergency preparedness when Hurricane Isabel struck North Carolina following the completion of her master of public health degree in 2003. 

“Fieldwork helps students see public health in action, and they meet the people behind the data,” Horney said. “Meeting someone on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) who had to throw away all their food after the electricity went out and now can’t buy food until the end of the month teaches them empathy and helps them understand how disasters have differential impacts on different groups of people.”