Disaster Preparedness & Response Resource Center

Help Louisiana Medicaid Patients Affected by Hurricane Ida

 

If you’d like to lend medical services to people from Louisiana affected by Hurricane Ida, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) has released information on how Texas physicians can help Louisiana Medicaid recipients.

Get the Details Here  

Tell Colleagues About The PBF Disaster Relief Fund

When Mother Nature strikes a blow and a federal disaster declaration is announced in Texas, TMA’s PBF Disaster Relief Fund activates to help re-establish physician practices in a timely manner.

Complete PBF Details

Disaster Planning Toolkit: Preparing for the Unexpected

 

Materials in this handbook provide guidance for many emergency situations commonplace in Texas. These guidelines can help the practice identify key emergencies, know what to do in an emergency situation, and plan for the safety of your team. The handbook provides tips on how to train your staff and help develop strategies for resuming functions after an emergency occurs.
1.75 AMA PRA Cat. 1 • 1.75 ETHICS

Prepare Your Staff and Office  

TMA Whitepaper: Good Samaritan Law

Expansion of the Good Samaritan law to volunteer health care professionals and sponsoring health care institutions for care, assistance, or advice provided during a disaster

A General Overview of Senate Bill 752 (86th Legislature) 

Volunteering

Volunteer to help (Link to the Texas Disaster Volunteer Registry)

The Texas Disaster Volunteer Registry is run by the Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas physicians can sign up with the registry as a volunteer to provide medical help to Texas communities during or after a disaster.  

• Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 Federal Law

PPE Support to Texas Physicians

In the chaos of today's health care environment, TMA is here for Texas physicians. Together with our county medical societies, we distributed more than $97 million in PPE across the state.

PPE Resource Center

Helping Your Practice Survive an Emergency or Disaster

Every healthcare office should maintain written policies for addressing any kind of emergency (e.g., utility disruption or a manmade disaster) and particularly inclement weather and hurricanes. Physicians should also be aware of emergency management plans in the county or community. Click here for a list of local Texas emergency preparedness websites provided by Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS).

Here are a few important tips for you and your staff when dealing with an emergency or disaster:

• Know where your office gas, electricity, and water connections are in case you need to turn them off. Keep back-up generators or a storage plan for your refrigerating systems.
• Protect your patient records accordingly.
• Prepare your staff with employee contact lists and information sheets so you and your staff can communicate if an evacuation is necessary.

• Additionally, the following websites offer preparedness tips for all business:
• -Ready Business - FEMA
• -Emergency Preparedness for Businesses - CDC

Preparedness Information for Your Patients

Physicians can play a significant role in helping patients prepare and respond to disaster situations. Patients, especially those with fragile health, should be counseled on the importance of having a disaster plan in place for themselves and their families.

In addition, physicians can help their patients prepare by:

• Reminding special needs patients frequently of the 2-1-1 Texas system and instructing them to register with 2-1-1 if they think they will need assistance.
• Providing guidance to patients with special needs, including pregnant women and those with chronic conditions or disabilities.
• Discussing maintenance of medications and equipment during a disaster, as well as how to obtain additional medication or equipment if needed.
• Directing patients to preparedness planning resources such as texasprepares.org, and ready.gov.

The Beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Hurricane Harvey: A Look Back

 

The TMA Disaster Fund helped 54 practices rebuild from Hurricane Harvey. Studies of the public health, mental health, and environmental effects of the storm could take years to complete. Meanwhile, physician practices share their own lessons learned.

"I Was About to Close Up Shop"