289940
Integrating alternative and complementary care practitioners in Oregon's state disaster volunteer program
Eric Gebbie, DrPH, MIA, MA,
Public Health Division, Health Security, Preparedness and Response Program, Oregon Health Authority, Portland, OR
Akiko Berkman, MPA, MPH,
Health Security, Preparedness and Response Program, Oregon Health Authority, Public Health Division, Portland, OR
Scott Mist, PhD, MAcOM, MS, MA,
Fibromyalgia Research Group, School of Nursing; Arthritis and Rheumatic Diseases Department, School of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR
Oregon's Public Health Division has massively increased the number of alternative and complementary health care practitioners in its official State Emergency Registry of Volunteers in Oregon (SERV-OR). Like all states, Oregon has been mandated and funded by the US Department of Health and Human Services to manage a statewide Emergency System for the advanced Registration of Healthcare Professionals (ESAR-VHP), and like most states it has focused on key professions such as nurses and physicians. However, in 2011 the state program officers initiated a challenging program expansion through the integration of alternative and complementary care practitioners, including licensed acupuncturists, naturopathic physicians and chiropractors. The expansion encountered challenges such as varied personal experience with, knowledge of, and biases about such fields of alternative and complementary practice. The personnel pursued the integration of such professionals based on three assumptions: (1) Such professionals were licensed by the state to provide care, regardless of any opinions; (2) there is demand for their services in non-emergencies, so there would be demand for their services in the wake of public health emergencies; (3) any such practitioners interested in volunteering for disaster response would bring skills, commitment, and social capital to the volunteer program and the broader network of stakeholders involved. Over the two years, a process of outreach and engagement through meetings, focus groups, and more, increased the number of such practitioners from two acupuncturists and one naturopathic physician to 54 licensed acupuncturists, 38 naturopathic physicians and 40 chiropractors, among the highest proportion of participation per capita of licensees among all licensed health care professionals in Oregon.
Learning Areas:
Program planning
Public health or related organizational policy, standards, or other guidelines
Learning Objectives:
Describe official state-based volunteer programs funded by the US Department of Health and Human Services
List four limitations expected by state volunteer programs regarding the incorporation of alternative and complementary care practitioners into mainstream emergency health care worker volunteer operations
Describe the Oregon Health Authorities process, program and evaluation of the first two years’ expansion of the participation of acupuncturists, naturopathic physicians and chiropractors into the State Emergency Registry of Volunteers in Oregon (SERV-OR).
Keyword(s): Alternative Medicine/Therapies, Disasters
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the systems coordinator for the Oregon Health Authority Public Health Division's State Emergency Registry of Volunteers in Oregon, known as SERV-OR. I hold a Doctorate in Public Health leadership from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and I have worked in public health and public health preparedness for approximately 14 years.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.
