COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution

EM: “Remember the Prepared4ALL process we talked about on your last visit? Each letter in Prepared stands for a different step or strategy in collaborating for inclusive emergency planning.” Text on screen: (As EM speaks Carrie, who is also a certified ASL interpreter, signs. Another person in the room can also do ASL interpretation.)

What information about the Prepared4ALL steps and strategies do you remember?

EM: “We don’t just talk about our Prepared4ALL process, we use it for emergency and public health preparedness planning situations. Let’s take COVID-19 as an example. We all know about its horrible impact on the disability community, people in congregate care settings, seniors and many others.”

Carrie: “As the COVID-19 vaccine is being developed and tested, we’re creating plans to distribute the vaccine to community members in a safe, inclusive, and accessible way. An ‘emergency dispensing site (EDS)’ or ‘point of distribution (POD)’ is a place in the community where people go during a public health emergency to receive “medical countermeasures” like medicine or vaccines.

“Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), EDS must be physically accessible, and services provided there must be inclusive.

“Now think about Tornado Gap where you’re from. We understand that your community is planning an EDS site to distribute a new and safe COVID-19 vaccine. You learn from the Tornado Gap Times online edition that there is likely to be a large drive-thru EDS and a smaller indoor EDS. Your disability organization, doesn’t know if there has been any related access and inclusion planning but you want to use the Prepared4ALL process to reach out to collaborators and to jointly identify and address with local planners any access and inclusion gaps.”

PJ: “You start thinking: 

• How can we encourage people with disabilities to use our drive-thru and indoor EDS?
• What communication methods should the community use to get the word out about the EDS?
• What should the message content be?
• How can we make the message understandable?
• How can we make the EDS accessible to all?
• How could we address the fear of vaccines that some people with disabilities have because of previous negative experiences with local government?
• If our county doesn’t have an existing EDS plan – where do we start?

What are some other questions you think about?

“The disability inclusion issue is, of course, whether there are accessible EDS indoors and outdoor (drive-thru) EDS.

“Here is what you know right now. Over 25% of Disaster Gap community members have a disability which should be addressed during EDS planning. You’ve heard that your local emergency and public health preparedness planners work closely together, but as in many other communities, they are in different departments. So…you have two plusses: (1) The approximate number of people with disabilities in Disaster Gap is likely known; and (2) Local public health and emergency planners work closely with each other. This tells you that local politics between the two agencies may not be a big issue.

“Who takes ownership of this issue, you ask yourself. You decide to call your local public health preparedness planner first. Your neighbor told you that the planner was very helpful during last year’s local flu season and you know that COVID is a public health problem. The local public health department is in charge of COVID-19 planning and response according to the community’s website. But you keep in mind that if you’re not successful you can call the local emergency manager.

Elevator speech:  You begin thinking of an elevator speech to use to open your call. This is a short, get-to-the point, speech on what you can offer and what you’d like potential local government partners to do. You plan to say: “I represent Access & Equity, Inc., a local disability organization. We serve 1000 Tornado Gap residents with disabilities each year. We’d like to learn more about the upcoming COVID-19 EDS and ask some questions related to physical accessibility and inclusion.”

Identify the local EM and PH agencies: “The community website has contact information for the public health office and emergency manager. The public health office is part of the county Health and Human Services Department and the emergency manager sits in the county Public Safety Department, which includes police and fire. The Fire Chief serves as the temporary Emergency Manager. There is a local ADA Coordinator, also listed on the website.

“Going online again, you can’t find a local emergency planning advisory committee. You make a note to ask the local emergency manager and public health planner to confirm that the community doesn’t have this kind of committee.

“You make the call and learn some more information about the upcoming EDS. You send a thank you email which says that you will be in touch again after you share what you’ve learned with some other organizations.

Character #8: “R is for Relate. Find local organizations with similar goals for collaboration. Show partners how including a disability perspective in local emergency and public health preparedness planning links to their work. You have colleagues at several other disability and health organizations, the local Center for Independent Living, chapter of The Arc and community health center. One year ago you worked on a joint project. You decide to contact them. You’ve heard that the local houses of worship are active in the community and you decide to contact two of them.

“You ask your colleagues if anyone has a contact at a house of worship. A colleague offers to connect you. You also look at the local Health and Human Services Department website and do some more online searching and you learn about the local food pantry and a veteran-run support organization. You also start thinking about the self-advocacy group for people with intellectual/developmental disabilities that meets in the local community health center. Thinking about the importance of cultural diversity you decide you’ll also contact Salud, a local health and social services program serving the Latinx community you’ve seen mentioned online via the Tornado Gap Times, as well as the regional Somali Health Board is composed of community health leaders in Tornado Gap. “You remember that the local community college has a strong self-advocacy group. Perhaps they could they be used to test message content for literacy and comprehension. The local Rotary club has shown an interest in community projects in the past, so you keep them in mind for any volunteers that you may need and as potential funders.

Meeting invitation: “You email the organizations your identified first, plus some others you found, and plan to follow up with a phone call. The email contains the meeting invitation and a “pitch” about the importance of community organization participation in local emergency planning.

“Your email looks something like this:

What edits would you suggest for this email?

Hold the Meeting: You meet via remotely with the 5 organizations that responded positively to the invitation.

At the meeting you ask:

• How do you prepare for emergencies as an organization?
• Do you support staff and/or constituents or service recipients to plan for emergencies?”
• Do you offer trainings about emergency/disaster/COVID-19 issues?
• Does your organization have a relationship with the local emergency manager or public health planner?

You take notes while people talk. You notice that several unmet needs or gaps come up and you make a list.

The group shares more information about the upcoming EDS.

The group develops a new elevator speech for a phone call or email to the public health preparedness planner:  

“We represent 5 Tornado Gap disability and other community-based organizations. Together we serve 5000 Tornado Gap residents with disabilities, limited financial or food resources and diverse cultures each year. We’d like to learn more about the upcoming EDS and ask some questions related to physical accessibility and inclusion. We’d like to understand how the upcoming EDS will incorporate the needs of children and adults with disabilities, those who may not have cars and may walk or roll in, people who may communicate differently, and non-English speakers. We’d also like to learn about the hours of the EDS and how it will accommodate people who can’t take time off of work or who bring children with them because they don’t have childcare.”

Next the group reviews the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements relating to local government emergency services. The ADA requires an accessible and inclusive EDS, but there are other important laws too.  Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability in certain health programs or activities which receive federal US Department of Health and Human Services funding (which local public health agencies are likely to do). The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination based on race or ethnicity.

After the meeting you email attendees with these items: (1) Thank you for participating; (2) Summary of meeting notes; (3) Follow up action items; (4) Poll about the best date for the next meeting.

Character #18: “The E in Prepared is for Engage.

Before Engaging: You hold another meeting with the group. You review the basics of the American Emergency Planning System so that everyone shares the same understanding. Some people are surprised that there is really a system of systems. You also discuss the importance of household emergency planning. Group members share personal preparedness resources with each other and, as a first step, plan to share the resources with their organization’s employees, volunteers, and the people served. This is also important tactically because emergency and public health planners are likely to talk about the importance of personal preparedness.

The group thinks of specific questions to ask during a meeting with the public health preparedness planner and emergency manager, such as whether the county has a community- based organization emergency planning advisory group or other ways for residents or organizations to participate in local emergency planning. They think about asking what expectations the emergency and public health preparedness planners have for local organizations and residents. They also think about how to show interest in the work of the local emergency and public health preparedness offices and what kinds of technical assistance they might offer the planners and the community.

What kinds of skills and strengths might a disability organization have to offer local emergency planners?

Engaging: The group now thinks of itself as a Prepared4ALL Action Team.  The Team reviews the elevator speech and turns it into a group email requesting a meeting with the local emergency and public health preparedness planners. (Note that this may be one or two meetings, depending on the community and the relationships between the planning offices.) The group decides to focus on meeting with the public health planner in case a request for a joint meeting with the emergency management planner is denied.

The Action Team receives a positive reply from both offices and the date/time are set for a remote meeting. The public health office will set up the meeting. The Action Team asks its members for accommodation needs and one member needs sign language interpretation. While this would normally be the legal responsibility of the emergency management and public health offices, they report back to the group that don’t know how to do this. One Team member explains to the planners the way to request an interpreter and the local government offices do so. The person who needs the interpreter is not charged for this service, in keeping with the law.

The Meeting: Before the meeting the Action Team practices their pitch, questions they have, the “ask” and “offer” of technical support. The Team practices how it will introduce its members and who will speak for the group. The meeting goes well. The planners answer questions asked.

The planners also ask a number of questions about the disability and other organizations and the people they serve.

“Planning gaps appear:

• The sites have not been checked for physical accessibility.
• There is a plan for the EDS process, from arrival to sign-in to intake to receiving the vaccine, to resting afterward, to sign out, to departure, but it has not been reviewed for inclusiveness.
• The planners don’t know if the public health professionals and EDS workers/volunteers staffing the EDS have been trained on disability-related issues and accommodations.
• Signage has not yet been created. There is no accessibility or plain language plan for the signage.
• There is no non-English language or sign language interpretation plan.
• There is no provision for people who might need extra support or a quiet space away from sensory stimulation. ​
• No decision has been made about messaging. There are questions about how to encourage vaccination, which communication modalities to use, message content and how to make the messages accessible, understandable and actionable.”

The planners ask for the Team’s help in fixing the gaps. Both the Action Team and the planners agree to think about possible solutions and the group plans to meet again to talk about them. In the meantime, the planners agree not to move forward with signage and messaging and to find out more about site accessibility. They agree to send the Team copies of the current EDS plan. The Team asks the planners to think about similar situations, like flu clinics, and what solutions have worked before. They ask for copies of any “hotwash” discussion notes and “after-action reports,” which the planners send. (Hotwashes usually happen right after an EDS and after action reports are written after more research and discussion.)

The planners caution the team that they don’t have a lot of time or money to make big changes….But the planners do continue to think about the gaps after the meeting. They speak with the county ADA Coordinator who finds someone who is knowledgeable to review building accessibility and identifies county funding for sign language interpretation. The Coordinator arranges for sign language interpretation for the EDS. The planners email the Team with an update.

Character #19 [Marco, but Carrie, who knows ASL, is interpreting for him. So we should see speech bubbles for each of them. In Marco’s speech bubble it should say something like “Signing.” Before the next draft we should check with Jen Tuell about this.]

Carrie: “I’ll interpret Marco’s comments, since I’m fluent in ASL.   

“The next P is about being Positive.

Each organization thinks about their strengths, resources, partnerships, personnel and resources that might be of help. They think about what worked well during a yearly flu clinic for seniors held by one of the partner organizations.

The Action Team meets again to discuss the plan gaps and potential opportunities to address them based on organizational strengths.

And the Team and planners continue to email back and forth.

Prepared4ALL Action Team Meeting Notes

Gap	Potential Solution(s)
The sites have not been checked for physical accessibility.	The Team reviews an article mentioned in the Prepared4ALL online training and makes a list of suggestions for accessible space design inside the building. The Team also notes the need for a plan for people who arrive on foot, driving oversize accessible vans, and people arriving by wheelchair, as well as those arriving by car for the drive thru EDS. Maybe separate lanes or covered spaces for walkers and wheelchair users are needed.
There is a plan for the EDS process, from arrival to sign-in to intake to receiving the vaccine, to resting afterward, to sign out, to departure, but it has not been reviewed for inclusiveness.	The Action Team reviews the plan for inclusiveness and makes a list of suggested changes.
The planners don’t know if the public health professionals and EDS workers/volunteers staffing the EDS have been trained on disability-related issues and accommodations.	The planners email that they have checked and some of the workers/volunteers have had training but others haven’t. The planners have asked someone who has had training to meet with those who haven’t. The planners have purchased the inexpensive Tips for First Responders laminated card set for the workers/volunteers. These booklets have “just in time” information about disabilities. To save money they will also print out some copies from the website. [Resource links will be available right before you receive your Prepared4ALL Certificate.]
Signage has not yet been created. There is no accessibility or plain language plan for the signage.	In the Prepared4ALL training you learned about plain language. You have some resources you could share with the Action Team and the planners. You ask the Team if anyone would be interested in reviewing Spanish or English language signs. Team members reach out to others in the community. A Team member and several community residents volunteer.
There is no non-English language or sign language interpretation plan.	The community health center shares that it uses tablets with remote access to non-English language interpreters. As part of its community service, the community health center will loan the EDS 3 tablets for ½ a day and will ask the local hospital if they can match their offer for the other ½ day. Salud and the Somali Health Board each offer to send two of their volunteer corps members to the EDS for part of the day for in-person translation.
There is no provision for people who might need extra support or a quiet space away from sensory stimulation	The Team makes a list of suggestions, like setting aside a quiet room inside and a rest area outside if someone experiences sensory over stimulation. The suggestion includes asking the county to work with the local emergency volunteer group to have extra trained volunteers for support needs.
No decision has been made about messaging. There are questions about how to encourage vaccination, best communication modalities, message content and how to make the messages accessible, understandable and actionable.	The Action Team starts a suggestion list about message content and format. They suggest that the County asks people with disabilities to review the messages for accessibility and that native Spanish speakers review any Spanish language messaging. On the suggestion list they note how to get materials Brailled, create sign language videos, etc. Someone mentions the free Show Me tool, the COVID communication card, and the CDC’s Clear Communication Index tool. [Available before you receive your Prepared4ALL Certificate]

Think about 3 of the gaps the planners and Action Team found. Then think about other ways to address those gaps.

The public library might be able to loan Video Magnifiers for people with low vision to read the vaccine handout. The County might have chairs to bring to the indoor EDS in case people tire during the long wait. And the County Public Works Department could help identify an indoor EDS site by checking building air quality and ventilation.

Knowing about community resources is important for Action Teams. Don’t assume that the local planners will know about all local resources.

The takeaway is: Making connections is always better before anemergency.

The planners email the Team with new information:

• “They’ve identified a local sign language interpreter who works with the annual Disasterville Day celebration, celebrating the founding of the County. They want to make an American Sign Language (ASL) educational video about the EDS. Disasterville’s local public cable TV station will work with the interpreter and then broadcast the video, which will also be available from the public library, school libraries and other community places.
• “Disasterville’s police chief has a young teenage son with Autism, information he has shared publicly. He has offered to work at a quiet area to be set up for the indoor EDS. His wife offered to be outside at a quiet outdoor area.
• “The hotel next to the EDS site has agreed to loan their shuttle service to assist community members without cars in getting to the EDS during breaks in the usual shuttle schedule. The hotel will carry out COVID-19 health measures for the vans guided by the public health department.
• “State government plans to require online registration prior to arrival at the EDS. For the community members without internet access (and for those who forget to register), the public health department will borrow 10 Tablets from Disasterville High School, sanitize them, and then use them for in-person registration.

“The Action Team starts to get excited that the collaboration is moving forward.”

PJ: “The A stands for advance opportunities.

“Make the most of timing and opportunities such as engaging in September’s Preparedness Month campaigns (See ready.gov and FEMA.gov) or participating in existing emergency preparedness events like drills and exercises (practice for emergencies).

“Too bad…you missed out on Preparedness Month and there are no scheduled drills. Also, the local Day Hab program makes a weekly library trip on Wednesdays. Normally this would be a great time to share EDS information with staff and program participants. But because of COVID, the library and the local Rotary club delivers books to the program.

“But a coalition of Day Hab self-advocacy groups has an upcoming online meeting and they could share EDS information with their members. Because this is a voluntary organization the public health department will contact them.

“The Tornado Gap Times weekly print and daily online editions and the local cable TV station agree to run stories about the EDS at the same time. There will also be interviews with Action Team members, the Disability Commission (an appointed local government volunteer position), Carrie (the ADA coordinator), the chair of the Somali Health Center, and the chief health officer from Salud. The goal will be to share information about the EDS plans and facts about the vaccine to keep the County informed. The County and public library websites will archive the stories and interviews.

“The Team meets again.

Character 10: “I’ll take it from here. Salud and the Somali community health center want to ask if they can have information tables at the indoor and outdoor EDS sites.

“The other organizations think this is a good idea. It’s an opportunity to share information about the organizations’ good work.  This idea gets added to the suggestion list for the planners.

“Salud mentions that the high school Advanced Placement Spanish teachers are native Spanish speakers. Maybe there’s a learning opportunity for the students learning Spanish, with appropriate oversight by their teachers and review by Salud. This idea gets added to the suggestion list.

“Someone mentions the importance of welcoming personal care assistants at EDS sites. Personal care assistants perform vital services for people with disabilities that support independence. Some people may arrive with personal assistance providers and they should not be separated, even if there is a ‘no visitors’ rule.

“Someone else suggests that EDS messages might say that personal care assistants are welcome and may receive a vaccine if they would like. Because a personal care assistant and client spend so much time together this might help stop COVID spread. (Tornado Gap Public Health will have to plan for additional vaccines.) Someone else mentions that If a person arrives at an EDS with a personal care assistant or aide, the work burden on EDS workers and volunteers can be minimized. But a community may not require someone with a disability to bring a personal care assistant, aide or other support person with them to an EDS or other place to receive emergency services.

“The Team also identified other people, staff and individuals served by their agencies, with lived experience with disability, chronic and mental health conditions, who would be able to review the planner’ EDS messaging. They would be able to let me, as the public health preparedness planner, know whether the messages would sound accurate and actionable to the disability community.”

[Thought bubble for Character 8]: “The list of discussion topics for the next meeting with the planners grows.”

PJ: “Think about timing and opportunities. What else could an Action Planning Team make the most of?

“The Action Team members started thinking about the best way to share EDS messages with their staff and the people they serve. People like to hear information from people and organizations they trust. As a disability organization, Access & Equity, Inc. is an expert about the people they serve. Access & Equity knows that their Disability Service Navigators, most of whom have disabilities themselves, often talk to stakeholders as does the Community Living Department. You decide that those groups will be the main messengers for EDS messages.”

Carrie: “The next R stands for Reflect.

“Before the next meeting with the planners, the Team reflects on their work to date. 

“As a group they think about questions like:

• What did we expect?
• What helped and what didn’t?
• What assumptions did we make?
• What other experiences can help us understand this one?
• What did we learn?
• What ideas make our understanding better?
• What did we learn for the future? How can we continue our success?
• Thinking ahead to an After Action Report, what should we put in the report?

“A designated person takes notes so that in the future it will be easier to think of solutions. No one wants to recreate the wheel.”

Reflect on your time in Disasterville today. What did you expect? What did you learn? What new ideas do you have?

PJ: “The next E is for Envision.

“The Action Team and planners meet to share information and solutions to try. They think about what a successful EDS process would look like. Then they create a flexible plan for moving forward, based on new ideas and making changes if needed as they go along.

“Their vision:

            “If we are successful, everyone in our community who wants to will easily and comfortably access the EDS and receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Our EDS-related public health messaging will be clear, in plain language, and actionable, with clear information regarding accessibility issues.”

Think about a vision for a successful emergency shelter. Ask yourself: If an emergency shelter is successful for people with disabilities, what will it look like?

“Then the Team and planners discuss specifics.

• “When the first site was checked for accessibility it was found to be inaccessible and a new site with an accessible building and large parking lot was picked.

• “The planners will provide needed PPE to EDS workers, people getting the vaccine and support providers.

• “There will be many ways for people who receive the vaccine to sign the EDS paperwork—in addition to new (clean) pens, there will be fat markers (easier to grip), a signature guide, and there is a plan if someone can’t write.

• “The planners accept the Action Team’s suggestions for accessible space design. They will get the county Public Works Department to make the changes.

• “The planners approach the police chief to seek insights about access issues. The police chief and his son speak to the planners together. The Team is invited.

• “The planners and Team review the suggested process for receiving the vaccine and together make changes to the plan. The public health nurses (who will give the vaccine) plan for someone who can’t stick their hand out a car window to get the shot. They plan for someone who gets the vaccine while on a van lift.

• “The planners share the EDS worker and volunteer disability awareness materials they found. The Team feels that additional information should be added, so the group makes a list of additional tips. Action Team members offer to take turns on call by phone/texting/email during the EDS, in case there are questions.

• “The planners appreciate the plain language resources for signage and communication materials from the Action Team. They agree to use the resources. The Team offers to review materials and mentions the idea of approaching the high school Spanish department and the coalition members from the Somali Board of Health, which the planners like.

• “The planners appreciate and accept the offers from Salud and the Somali Health Board about translation and tablet use. They set up a time to learn how to use the tablets.

• “The Action Team coordinates review of EDS messaging.

• “The EDS building has space for 2 quiet areas, following social distance protocols. The parking lot will be set up for the same.

• “Messaging is sent out via the county website, online, print, and cable TV media, and local government agency newsletters (like the Council on Aging newsletter). Information appears on the public library website. The planners use the Action Team as conduits for information to their constituents and ask other local organizations to do the same.

• “Besides mentioning day, time, and EDS address, messages include accessibility information (e.g. accessible entrance and bathroom availability). Messages ask residents  to phone or email accommodation requests.

• “The planners ok the information tables and the County agrees to set them up. The planners have a plan for an info table outside. The planners also suggest having a ‘thank you’ message to the Team member organizations on the public health website. This gives the Team member organizations more visibility.

EM: “The final D is for Deploy or putting the plan into action.

“The EDS happens as planned, with the suggested modifications.

“There is informal data collection about, the user experience, messages, messaging, physical access, and accommodations, etc. 

“While everything isn’t perfect and there are glitches and phone calls to the Action Team with questions, it’s a success.

“The planners and Action Team keep notes of what went well and what could be improved.

“They use the information to create an After Action Report draft. Some EDS participants are willing to share their stories. Photos/video are taken of EDS site set up and copies of public awareness messages are appended to the EDS plan. The Team reviews and comments on the draft.

“The planners are pleased and now want to work with the Action Team to update the EDS plan. The planners and the Team are starting to develop a long-term relationship.”

Character #8: Don’t forget the 4ALL! Use the STATE questions and Reflect questions to check that your efforts are “for all” in the community.

The Action Team meets with the public health and emergency planners to reflect on the EDS.

“The group of planners and Team member talks about the Same Time Access to Everyone (STATE) questions…Do we have:

• “Accessible space?
• “Inclusive process reflecting everyone in the community?
• “Accommodations?
• “Accessible communications
  • Plan to communicate with all
  • Message content
  • Message format
  • Message actionable?
  • Message received?
• “Inclusive philosophy?
• “Cultural competence?
• “Awareness of community needs?
• “Other?

“The group talks about the Reflect questions again.

• “What did we expect?
• “What helped and what didn’t?
• “What assumptions did we make?
• “What other experiences can help us understand this one?
• “What did we learn?
• “What ideas help our understanding?
• “What guidance do we have for the future? How can we be successful the next times?

“The local planners and the Action Team have developed a relationship. The local planners identify other community organizations and invite the Team and the others to form a formal community emergency advisory committee.

“Ideas for sustaining the relationships with the new advisory committee include:

• “Monthly topical meetings (about disasters, emergency planning and related topics like cybersecurity and other organization security issues). One meeting a year will include a table top exercise (practice emergency event that participants talk through).
• Each month at the meetings the community organizations complete a 1 page survey of emergency resources to share, strengths and needs for the planners and each other.
• “Formal opportunities for the members to network and share successes with each other.
• “An email list for the committee which can be used for emergency-related topics and for potential collaborations outside of emergencies. There is routine sharing of community- based organization emergency planning resources.
• “The planners provide opportunities for cross branding. For example, committee member organizations are listed on the county website.
• “The committee and planners create media news stories and social media posts about the committee and member organizations.
• “The County Commissioners recognize the committee each year in a public way.
• “The committee member organizations are used as trusted information sources to share county personal emergency preparedness plus other key information.”

Think again about the Prepared4ALL process. Using the Reflect questions, role-play and write down what you think your local community team might think about using this process for engaging partners:

• “What did we expect?
• “What helped and what didn’t?
• “What assumptions did we make?
• “What other experiences can help us understand this one?
• “What did we learn?
• “What ideas help our understanding?
• “What guidance do we have for the future? How can we be successful the next times?

Carrie: “Terrye, I hope this example helped you understand our the Prepared4ALL process. Luckily, our community has good experience with this. But even a community with little to no inclusive emergency planning can use Prepared4ALL to begin. The process is flexible and adaptable for any community with any amount of resources, personnel, and experience.

Character 18 , signing and Carrie interpreting:  “Maybe we’ve made this all seem too easy to Terrye. What about local government partners who have trouble ‘getting it’? You know, EM and PJ, you’ve talked about this before.

EM: Oh, you’re talking about push back, right?

Character 18, signing and Carrie interpreting: “You’ve got it.”

EM:  “Well, you can get push back from some local emergency and public health preparedness planners. Some emergency planners may think that some other agency or organization is doing emergency planning for children and adults with disabilities. They may think it’s not their job. They may not understand that being responsible for the whole community’s emergency planning means being responsible for the WHOLE community’s emergency planning.”

Character 18, signing and Carrie interpreting: “I even heard that in Faraway County some local emergency managers thought that all issues related to emergency planning for people with disabilities were handled by disability provider agencies or the local government Senior Center. Some local emergency managers assumed that the state disability agency was handling it.”

EM: “What seems obvious to one person may not be obvious to another.”

PJ: “You know we have this in public health too. Some colleagues tell me that that they simply don’t see people with disabilities in their health promotion efforts. It doesn’t mean that people with disabilities don’t live in the community. These partners just need to understand how to connect better. It’s especially important given that one and four Americans is living with a disability.”

Character 18, signing and Carrie interpreting: “This can happen with disability and other community organizations too. They may think that they don’t need to get involved. Remember those TV shots of people waiting on roofs to be evacuated or stranded nursing home patients during floods? Disability organizations may not realize that disasters and pandemics are part of their mission too. That’s become even more obvious with COVID-19.”

EM: “My issue is how do you help local partners see this connection?”

PJ: “Well, it’s not a one size fits all for sure. It seems so simple, but it’s true: It’s all about relationships. That means having solid relationships before disaster strikes. I keep a mini directory for each community organization and try to develop two or three contacts in each one. If I only had one contact and they left I’d be stuck.

EM: “It can take time, but it’s worth it. Partners need to see the benefits. Sometimes you need to let partners know what’s in it for them. And you never know when this will pay off.

PJ: “You said it. I’ve had solid partners from one project come back to me and invite me to join another project, sometimes even years later.”

Character #8: “Terrye, we’ve talked your ears off today. What do you think about taking a break?”