Disaster preparedness initiatives within the Duke region is the responsibility of the Duke Healthcare Preparedness Coalition. The DHPC, now in its seventh year, is funded through a grant administered by the North Carolina Office of Emergency Medical Services and originating from the US Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary of Preparedness and Response (ASPR), additional funding is provided by grants from the Center for Disease Control (CDC, and the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The DHPC is operated by a full-time staff of three; A Regional Coordinator, and two Assistant Coordinators who serve as the NC 400 SMAT Commander / Logistics, and Planning / Finance Officers respectively.

Location

The program is headquartered at 100 Golden Drive in Durham, NC.

Service Area

Vance, Granville, Person, Caswell, Durham, Robeson, and Wake counties

Mission

Assist our regional partners and stakeholders in planning and mitigating for, responding to, and recovering from all-hazards disaster events. Through a robust program of training and exercises, we are working to facilitate stronger cooperation, collaboration, and communication within our stakeholder and partner agencies resulting in greater overall preparedness and resiliency.

Components

• Hospital and Community Preparedness Program
• NC 400 State Medical Assistance Team (NC 400 SMAT)

Steering Committee

The Coalition’s governance group and consists of representatives from the hospitals, Emergency Medical Services agencies, Community Health Centers, Local Public Health agencies, Home Health and Hospice agencies, Long-Term Care facilities, Medical Reserve Corps units, and other partner agencies within our eight-county service area.

Meetings

The DHPC meets quarterly and all are welcome to attend.

Contact

J David Marsee, Healthcare Preparedness Coordinator