MSA Security would like to welcome and introduce our first Guest Blogger, Brendan Healy!
Brendan is a cross-functional security, risk management, and business continuity professional serving in a national leadership capacity with InfraGard, an FBI Critical Infrastructure Protection Program based out of Washington D.C. Currently, he is at a global financial firm within operational risk, focusing on business continuity and information security. He is an active member with ASIS, OSAC, and NYPD Shield; and he has presented on risk management and critical infrastructure protection at the Mid-Atlantic Intelligence and Law Enforcement Training Seminar, as well as other various conferences.
Brendan holds an Advanced Graduate Certificate from New York University in Enterprise Risk Management, an MS from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Protection and Emergency Management, a BBA from Hofstra University, and multiple certifications including the CISSP, and CRISC designations for security and risk management.
Be sure to visit the MSA Security Blog for future posts from Brendan!
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Business Continuity Alert: Pandemic and Seasonal Flu Resources
By: Brendan Healy
Monitoring and remaining aware of both Seasonal Flu and Global Health Concerns is key to
protecting our populations, organizations, and critical infrastructure. Below I have compiled
several resources that may be useful in your Business Continuity and Emergency Management planning for pandemic and seasonal flu threats. These are several resources that I have found useful, and is a sampling of what is available. Always refer to your local or state health department for more information.
Additionally, I have included some details regarding a few global health concerns that are not prevalent in the United States, but should be considered for global situational awareness: (MERS-CoV, H7N9).
Seasonal Influenza Surveillance Resources:
- Google Flu Trends and Aggregated Data: http://www.google.org/flutrends/us/#US
Use of google aggregated search data provides intelligence and surveillance of potential early trends in seasonal flu activity. Reportedly has the potential to provide surveillance information up to two weeks ahead of the CDC's official reporting. Still experimental, but useful.
- CDC Flu Surveillance: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/fluactivitysurv.htm
Official sources for up-to-date reporting of flu trends across the US. Excellent data points and tools, including FluView, a national and regional level outpatient illness and viral surveillance tool.
- New York State DOH Flu Surveillance: http://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/influenza/surveillance/
NYS weekly influenza reporting and surveillance data with a weekly pdf aggregated report.
- New York City DOH Flu Surveillance Data: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/flu/html/data/data.shtml
NYC's Emergency Department flu trending and data surveillance reporting
Global Health Concerns:
- MERS-CoV / Coronavirus: http://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/mers/
Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome has impacted individuals across the middle east and in parts of europe. Worthwhile to monitor as we have many global travelers throughout the New York Metro region. http://www.who.int/csr/don/2013_12_02/en/index.html http://www.who.int/ith/updates/20130605/en/index.html
- H7N9 - Avian Influenza A: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avianflu/h7n9-virus.htm
A new outbreak of Influenza A, mostly in China, has caused apx 45 deaths and over 145 cases from individuals with exposure to infected poultry. Chinese authorities have confirmed the largest presence of H7N9 in the Shandong and Jiangsu provinces. The Guangdong province also has had a handful of cases. (*current as of this blog posting)
Using these resources should help you and your orgnizations prepare for this and future years flu seasons. Always feel free to reach out for more information.
