That’s something they believe you can change fairly easily by stocking an emergency kit and drafting an emergency plan. But maybe you haven’t done so yet — perhaps because you don’t feel the need, or because you’ve put it off. Either way, Hoosier health officials want you to get started.

That’s why the Indiana State Department of Health is publicizing National Public Health Week, which runs Monday through April 8. The department wants people to be better prepared for such public health threats as natural disasters, outbreaks of communicable diseases, terrorist attacks and pandemic flu, said Dr. Judith Monroe, state health commissioner.

So far, she said, too few people have heeded officials’ warnings about such things as pandemic flu

“The general public is not responding,” she said. “They really do remain unprepared. That’s a real concern. (But) there are simple things folks can do.” Individuals and families should create a plan for what to do in case of a major emergency, she said.

Additionally, they should stock emergency kits with such items as nonperishable food and bottled water, medications, clothes, a battery-powered or hand-cranked radio, hygiene items, a first aid kit, and a flashlight and batteries. Monroe concedes the advice sounds simple enough, but said more people need to act on it. Although Indiana can see such natural disasters as flooding, tornadoes and earthquakes, Monroe believes that many Hoosiers, as Midwesterners, have a false sense of security.

“We kind of have a mentality that it won’t happen here,” she said. “The other thing is, we tend to procrastinate.”

Ideally, Monroe said, the publicity for National Public Health Week can help people overcome those obstacles and prepare themselves.

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com