BACKGROUND:
CDC has recently acknowledged that Pandemic Flu may be the next large scale public health threat. Every state has been encouraged to show the capability of addressing pandemic flu through large scale planning and drills. The CDC has formal guidelines in how state should approach their preparation, including adding Pandemic Influenza to the State's All Hazard Plan. The Office of Public Health, Immunization Program has been enhancing its immunization registry over the past three years to address mass emergency events such as Smallpox, Anthrax, and mass antibiotic dispensing from the Strategic National Stockpile. These registry tools can also be used in preparing for the onset and management of pandemic flu.

OBJECTIVE:
This presentation will discuss the methods in which LINKS native capabilities and its BT toolset can be used in pandemic flu related drills and possible events. Discuss the different phases in which pandemic flu is addressed using LINKS.

METHOD:
Discuss and demonstrate the different LINKS tools that will utilized during a pandemic flu epidemic including antiviral distribution, mass vaccination, and reminder-recall, and reports.

RESULT:
LINKS has utilized specific tools in smallpox and SNS drills. The pandemic flu drill effort will utilized the LINKS tools in similar much different fashion. LINKS has native tools that apply to specific phases: vaccine inventory, mass immunizations, reminder/recall, reports, etc. Each of these tools are planned for deployment and used during different phases of the pandemic.

CONCLUSION:
Immunization registries play a large role in preparing for and combating against BT events. The recent smallpox effort has positioned immunization registries and bioterrorism departments to become more educated and prepared.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
1. Describe benefits of immunization registries in preparing for mass emergency events
2. Describe the phases of pandemic flu response and the immunization registry tools used in each phase.
3. Describe how using the immunization registry to support Pandemic flu response differs from that of Smallpox