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\nJim Schwendinger, M.P.H., team lead for Epi-X.
\nWhen users log on to the Epi-X website, they see brief summaries of reports of outbreaks, and through Epi-X Forum can participate in discussions of ongoing health events or other subjects of interest. Users can describe a new health event in their jurisdiction by submitting a report. Any other Epi-X user can then comment on posted reports or add to standing Epi-X Forum discussions when they have questions, identify related cases, or wish to contribute insights.
\nPublic health officials across the United States have come to depend on Epi-X because of its secure website, discussion forums, user directory, and emergency notification capabilities. Eddy Bresnitz, MD, MS, former president of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE), recognized the contribution of Epi-X in his 2008 CSTE conference plenary address. He stated that he \u201ccounts Epi-X as a major accomplishment towards enhancing disease investigations.\u201d
\nThe success of Epi-X depends largely on three guiding principles: building community, being prepared, and responding to user needs. Epi-X does this by:
\nEpi-X has 6,038 users, approximately 35 percent are from state government, 35 percent are from local government, and 20 percent are from CDC.
\nPublic health officials across many disciplines and in various agencies are invited to join Epi-X. To recruit users, Epi-X partners with:
AAPCC \u2013 American Association of Poison Control CentersExternal \n
APHL \u2013 Association of Public Health LaboratoriesExternal \n
ASTHO \u2013 Association of State and Territorial Health OfficialsExternal \n
CSTE \u2013 Council of State and Territorial EpidemiologistsExternal \n
NACCHO \u2013 National Association of City and County Health OfficialsExternal \n
NASPHV \u2013 National Association of State Public Health VeterinariansExternal \n
Persons with public health responsibilities in other federal agencies are also recruited, including those from Department of Defense, Department of State, Department of Homeland Security, Environmental Protection Agency, Food and Drug Administration, Health and Human Services, United States Department of Agriculture, and Federal Emergency Management Agency.
\nRepresentatives from partner organizations and agencies convene annually at the Epi-X editorial board meeting. At this meeting, they discuss what has worked in the past and possible courses to follow in upcoming years. In addition, participants discuss proposals to add user groups or new types of content.
\nOne such proposal, to add more local users, was brought before the board in 2002. The board supported the proposal, but recommended that Epi-X be able to target report access and notification to subsets of users before adding any large groups of new users. (Until that time, every user could search for and view most reports posted on Epi-X). The targeting function was added in 2003 and local users from NACCHO were then actively recruited.
\nFun fact: Epi-X has 6,038 users, approximately 35 percent are from state government, 35 percent are from local government, and 20 percent are from CDC.
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