The All Hazards Plan has been developed to direct response, mitigation and recovery operations for employees of the Franklin County Health Department (FCHD). FCHD has utilized the criteria from the Project Public Health Ready program to develop an inclusive All Hazards plan. A planning committee, also known as the Emergency Management Team, was formed to address the criteria and document that all aspect of emergency response and recovery are included in the plan.

This plan is designed to provide an overview of the communications and media protocols the health department will follow during a public health crisis or emergency with public health consequences. It outlines the decisions and activities that will be taken for a timely, effective response. This plan applies to all public health issues impacting Franklin County. The plan is not s step-by-step or how to document and it does not replace appropriate training in Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication.

A fully functioning performance management system that is completely integrated into health department daily practice at all levels includes: 1) setting organizational objectives across all levels of the department, 2) identifying indicators to measure progress toward achieving objectives on a regular basis, 3) identifying responsibility for monitoring progress and reporting, and 4) identifying areas where achieving objectives requires focused quality improvement processes. (Public Health Accreditation Board. Standards and Measures Version 1.0. Alexandria, VA, May 2011)

The purpose of Franklin County Health Department’s (FCHD) Quality Improvement (QI) Plan and Accreditation and QI Policy is to foster a culture of quality improvement through continuous improvement of programs, services and administration. This goal is also reflected in FCHD’s 2015-2020 strategic plan.

FCHD developed its first Accreditation/Quality Improvement (QI) Team in June 2010. Later that fiscal year the QI Steering Committee was formed and developed a QI plan followed by an Accreditation and QI Policy that was approved by the Franklin County Board of Health. Several key staff members have been trained in QI methods and tools.

QI trainings to all staff have continued throughout each Fiscal Year since 2011, providing staff with tools, knowledge and templates to be a valuable member to the spread of an agency-wide culture of quality improvement.

Training and development of the workforce is one part of a comprehensive strategy toward agency quality
improvement. Fundamental to this work is identifying gaps in knowledge, skills, and abilities through the
assessment of both organizational and individual needs, and addressing those gaps through targeted training
and development opportunities.

This plan serves as the foundation of the Franklin County Health Department’s ongoing commitment to the
training and development of its workforce.

An organizational strategic plan provides a local health department (LHD) and its stakeholders with a clear picture of where it is headed, what it plans to achieve, the methods by which it will succeed, and the measures to monitor progress. A strategic plan is a leadership tool grounded in decisions the organization has made about strategic priorities for the near future – usually the next three to five years.

The strategic plan is not intended to be a stand-alone document; rather, it should be aligned with other important assessment, planning, and evaluation work such as a local community health improvement process, an agency quality improvement (QI) plan, operational/work plans or even an annual report.