title: A home health agency's pandemic preparedness and experience with the 2009 H1N1 pandemic.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Adequate pandemic preparedness is imperative for home health agencies.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 23-item pandemic preparedness survey was administered to home health agencies in the spring of 2010. The Kruskal-Wallis (KW) test was used to evaluate the relationships between agency size and preparedness indicators. Significant findings were further analyzed by the Mann-Whitney (MW) U post hoc test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The response rate was 25% (526/2,119). Approximately one-third of respondents (30.4%; n = 131) reported experiencing trouble obtaining supplies during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic. Small agencies were significantly more likely (Krusal-Wallis [KW] = 9.2; P < .01) to report having trouble obtaining supplies than larger-sized agencies (Mann-Whitney [MW] = 14,080; P < .01). Most home health agencies (87.3%; n = 459) reported having a pandemic influenza plan. One-third (33.5%; n = 176) reported having no surge capacity; only 27.0% (n = 142) reported having at least a 20% surge capacity. The largest agencies were significantly more likely (KW = 138; P < .001) to report having at least 20% surge capacity than medium-sized agencies (MW = 7,812; P = .001) or small agencies (MW = 8,306; P < .001). Approximately 80% (n = 414) reported stockpiling personal protective equipment. Three-quarters (71.3%; n = 375) reported fit-testing staff, and half (49.2%; n = 259) reported participating in disaster drills. The majority of home health professionals (75.1%; n = 395) reported having a personal/family disaster plan in place.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There are gaps in US home health agency pandemic preparedness, including surge capacity and participation in disaster drills, that need to be addressed.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biosecurity, School of Public Health, St. Louis University, MO 63104, USA. rebmannt@slu.edu
authors.forename: Terri
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Rebmann
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Citarella
authors.forename: Divya S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Subramaniam
authors.forename: Dipti P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Subramaniam
mesh_terms: D002959:Civil Defense / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006302:Health Services Research; D018574:Home Care Agencies; D006801:Humans; D053118:Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype / Q000276:immunology*; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy / Q000821:virology; D015233:Models, Statistical; D058873:Pandemics / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States