Current Projects
Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R.
A powerful new tool for identifying in-home life support users most vulnerable during a power outage.
Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R. helps jurisdictions target emergency support where it’s needed most during power outages.
Here’s why emergency response agencies are turning to Disaster Safety Strategies’ Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R. to bolster support for their most vulnerable life-support users during outages.
- Data aggregation: Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R. complements information from government agencies with more comprehensive data from untapped sources, including durable medical equipment (DME) suppliers, home health agencies, and electronic health records providers, to create the most complete database of individuals relying on life-support equipment.
- Enhanced reach: Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R. fills gaps left by voluntary special needs registries, capturing information on virtually all individuals using life support equipment within a jurisdiction and giving officials a fuller picture of those at greatest risk.
- Detailed risk profiles: Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R. develops detailed risk profiles based on the number of life support devices used and available backup battery capacity, allowing emergency responders to prioritize support for individuals with the least amount of device runtime during an outage. This data can also be used to calculate the additional battery capacity an individual would need to extend device runtime to longer durations, i.e., 24 hours, 36 hours, 48 hours, etc..
- Collaboration with health officials: By providing a detailed census of life-support users, Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R. enhances the ability of government agencies to plan effectively so resources can be prioritized for the most vulnerable populations.
- Real-time data: Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R. can leverage existing technologies to determine the real-time status of life support users to confirm support is still needed before deployment of resources.
- Greater inclusivity: Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R. captures data beyond HHS’s emPOWER database of Medicare beneficiaries relying on electric-powered medical devices by including Medicaid and privately insured individuals.
- Enhanced disaster planning: By providing a clearer picture of how many life support users reside in a specific area, P.I.O.N.E.E.R. helps hospitals better anticipate the potential influx of medical device users during power outages, optimizing planning and the allocation of resources.
With Patient P.I.O.N.E.E.R., you can transform your community’s emergency response capabilities for your most vulnerable citizens by more effectively obtaining, securing and aggregating Patient Information Needed to Expedite Emergency Response.
Power Outage Partners
Life Saving Power for Life Support Users
Power Outage Partners is an innovative new initiative that provides life-saving power to life support patients, extending device run time so patients have more time to safely evacuate during power outages. In short duration outages, the need to evacuate may be averted.
The first Power Outage Partners initiative was launched by the Louisiana Department of Health, which sought to provide funding to invasively ventilated Louisianans so they can purchase additional batteries to extend ventilator runtime during outages. Initial planning for the project was made possible with CDC funding and project management support from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO).
ASTHO has published a Toolkit showcased on this website that chronicles the Louisiana project and details other strategies jurisdictions can use to boost power outage support for individuals relying on electric-powered medical devices in their homes.
The concept for Power Outage Partners was developed by Eric Cote, an emergency power resilience expert, hired by ASTHO in 2021 to help the Louisiana Department of Health develop an operational plan for the nation’s first Power Outage Partners initiative. Cote was also hired by ASTHO to author the ASTHO toolkit published in August 2023.
Cote is now working with disability advocates and other stakeholders to expand Power Outage Partners across the U.S. while continuing to provide planning support for the inaugural Power Outage Partners project in Louisiana.
For additional details on Power Outage Partners, visit www.poweroutagepartners.com.
Powered for Patients
When Super Storm Sandy struck New York and New Jersey in 2012, Eric Cote followed news stories of six New York City area hospitals whose emergency power systems were shuttered by the flooding Sandy unleashed, triggering four emergency evacuations. He wondered if closer collaboration between hospitals, government agencies and utilities could have avoided any of the emergency evacuations.
Cote shared his thoughts with a colleague at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with whom he’d worked on other client projects. The HHS official told Cote that when hospitals face a serious threat during a disaster, such as the loss of emergency power, local officials are so focused on helping the impacted facility that they often don’t think to ask HHS for help, despite the agency’s access to sizeable federal resources including temporary generators. The official encouraged Cote to think about ways to improve situational awareness for federal officials in such scenarios so that HHS could more quickly engage with state officials to offer any needed federal support.
This conversation sparked Cote’s idea for Powered for Patients, an initiative that would foster increased collaboration and information sharing among government officials, hospitals, and utilities when emergency power is threatened during a power outage.
In 2014, Cote received funding from HHS to convene the inaugural meeting of Powered for Patients in Washington, D.C. Senior officials from HHS, FEMA, and the Department of Energy met with state emergency managers and public health officials along with leaders from the hospital, utility and emergency power sectors. Participants discussed the challenges facing hospitals during outages, federal temporary emergency power resources available to states during major disasters, and ways to improve situational awareness for local, state and federal officials when emergency power threats arise. Opportunities for increased collaboration among stakeholders were also discussed. This meeting was the launching pad for the work Cote undertook on behalf of Powered for Patients for many years to come.
For more information about Powered for Patients, visit www.poweredforpatients.org.