Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) - Palau’s Ministry of Health and Human Services (MHHS) is made up of three Bureaus – the Bureau of Public Health, Bureau of Hospital Services, Bureau of Health System Administration. The Bureau of Public Health is the only public health department in Palau and the Emergency Health Program (comprised of PHEP, HPP EMSC) is located within this bureau (see ORG Chart). Palau’s PHEP program components include 1) increase readiness levels on emergency preparedness; 2) increase levels of education on emergency preparedness and response; and 3) improve cohesion of all partners to increase quality of preparedness. The program’s ultimate objective is to enhance the capacity and capability of our nation to prepare for, respond to, and recover from public health emergencies. This aligns with the main goal of the CDC's Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Program to enhance our readiness to save lives and prevent morbidity and mortality during emergencies that exceed our day-to-day capacity. Over the years, the program has led emergency preparedness activities for the MHHS. To ensure successful implementation of strategies and activities for the new 5-year project period, Palau’s PHEP program has adopted CDC's Response Readiness Framework, which outlines 10 program priorities, along with the 15 Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Capabilities, to guide its efforts. Moving forward, the program’s main focus will be on improving risk assessment process to support fair and inclusive community planning, fulfilling exercise requirements, collaborating with other public health programs on data modernization, and enhancing communication strategies and partnerships. This will be achieved through the programs continued close collaboration with the Hospital Preparedness Program in the next five years, during which it will strive to further strengthen and improve relationships with all partners and community stakeholders in emergency preparedness. This includes the program’s ongoing efforts to maintain and enhance the Health-Related Emergency Preparedness Coalition or HCC/SAC, as it remains a top priority to maintain these partnerships and utilize available resources to achieve our goals. The immediate need of the program is to ensure that all essential program functions are being met, including the hiring and training of all key staff and having the necessary tools and equipment (admin and budget preparedness). It is also envisioned that planning and/or strategic meetings will be conducted with HCC/SAC members to address any and all identified gaps concerning all activities, including ensuring inclusivity (equity) on program components. Additionally, the PHEP program, with its key partners and stakeholders, intends to conduct meetings, trainings, and exercises to develop the necessary skills needed to ensure an effective and coordinated response to any public health threat. Finally, at the end of the 5-year period, it is envisioned that the Program together with its partners and stakeholders, have achieved overall goal of preventing or reducing morbidity and mortality for all impacted populations from incidents with public health consequences whose scale, rapid onset, or unpredictability stresses the public health system, while also ensuring earliest possible recovery and return of the public health system to pre-incident levels or improved functioning.
