September marks National Preparedness Month, a time dedicated to promoting family and community disaster planning. As natural disasters, pandemics, and other emergencies can strike without warning, it’s essential to be proactive rather than reactive. With a New England winter fast approaching, I thought this would be a great time to share information to ensure you have the knowledge and resources to take care of yourself and others, when help may be out of reach.
Consider the following to ensure you are medically prepared in the event of disaster:
- Create an Emergency Kit – Keep 7 days’ worth of medications you would require, including any prescriptions, over-the-counter pain relievers, and allergy medications, in a safe place.
- Refrigeration for Prescriptions – If you use a prescription medication that requires refrigeration, have a plan in place for keeping your medicine cold.
- Alternative Power Source – If you have any medical devices that require power, ie; a CPAP machine, make sure to have a plan in place for how you would power that device.
- Plan for Loss of Internet – If you have a medical device that requires access to the internet, ie; a glucose monitor, have an alternative plan in place for accessing the internet.
- Printed Record of Important Medical Information and Emergency Contacts – Digital records may be not be accessible in an emergency, so have a hard copy of important medical information, including your emergency contacts.
- Checklist – Have a detailed and practical checklist available in case of emergency. We have a great resource, Disaster Medical Preparedness Checklist, that you can download and customize based on your needs.
Being prepared can make all the difference in how well you navigate an emergency. This doesn’t mean you need to stockpile supplies, but having a plan in place can help you stay calm, safe, and healthy, during any disaster situation. If you are looking for additional information about National Preparedness Month, visit the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s website, linked here. You can also view short videos of me, discussing this important topic, linked here and here.
Please reach out if you have any questions. and visit the Employee Advocate page on our website, here, to learn more about the services I provide.
Sara Closson, BCPA
Employee Advocate
SClosson@AcadiaBenefits.com
Phone: 207.523.0065
Toll-Free: 866.761.2426
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