Eating's a risky business with water water everywhere and no powerA resident of a Hurricane Harvey-flooded neighborhood in Houston gets evacuated. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection photo by Glenn Fawcett) It's hurricane season. Power outages and flooding from massive storms like this year’s Harvey and Irma not only cause property damage but also threaten the food and water supply.
Emptied grocery store shelves in the days leading up to big storms are proof people prepare by buying bottled water and nonperishable foods. Army Chief Warrant Officer 5 Donald Smith, a Veterinary Corps food safety officer with the Defense Health Agency, also suggests getting a food thermometer.
“If the power goes out, you can check the temperature of foods in the refrigerator to determine if they’re still safe to eat,” he said. A safe temperature is 40 degrees Fahrenheit or lower.
Another measure: refrigerator food is no longer safe to eat if the power’s been out four hours or more, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC.
Before the power goes out, Smith suggests, move food you’re not planning to eat right away from the refrigerator to the freezer. Food in a full, unopened freezer is safe for about 48 hours, according to the CDC, and it’s safe for about 24 hours in a half-full freezer.
A tip to help determine how long the power was out is particularly useful if you evacuate your home. Put a glass of water in the freezer. After the water is frozen, place a penny on top. When you return to your home, check to see if the penny is on the bottom of the glass. If it’s still on the top, you’ll know you didn’t lose power – or only lost it briefly. If it’s on the bottom, you’ll know there was a complete thaw and you need to throw out the food in the freezer.
Food kept in the refrigerator should be arranged so raw meat doesn’t wind up dripping onto other items and contaminating them, Smith said. He added that people shouldn’t eat anything with an unusual odor, color, or texture.
“Don’t taste something to try to figure out if it’s safe to eat,” Smith said. “If in doubt, throw it out.”
Even nonperishable food can be unsafe to eat when it comes into contact with floodwater, Smith and other food safety experts say. This includes home canned goods as well as food in containers with screw caps, snap lids, crimped or twist caps, or flip tops.
Canned goods that are bulging, open, rusty, punctured, or dented are also unsafe. Undamaged, all-metal cans and retort pouches (such as shelf-stable juices) can be saved after floodwater exposure by removing the labels, washing, and then sanitizing with a bleach solution or by boiling. For more information about hurricanes, flooding, and foods, visit the Food and Drug Administration website.
Water that’s unsafe to drink is also unsafe for washing dishes, brushing teeth, washing and preparing food, and making ice and baby formula. For more information on food and drinking water safety after disasters, visit the CDC website.
Army Veterinary Service personnel may be called on to conduct food safety inspections after hurricanes and other emergencies as part of the Defense Support of Civil Authorities, or DSCA, response. Teams are providing food safety assistance in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, said Dr. Kristina McElroy, and they may also be asked to assist after Hurricane Irma. Tasks include inspecting operational rations and bottled water, local and fresh market food items purchased by the DoD, and local food establishments.
McElroy, a veterinary public health officer, is the Defense Health Agency’s DSCA coordinator for veterinary services. She works with other federal agencies on disaster planning, preparedness, and response involving animal health, agriculture, and food protection.
Read about how to prepare for health care needs during severe weather.
DHA director visits Ramstein, discusses healthcare changesRecently, Navy Vice Adm. Raquel C. Bono, Defense Health Agency director, visited Ramstein Air Base, to discuss future changes to the healthcare program for military members. (U.S. Air Force file photo) RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany — Navy Vice Adm. Raquel C. Bono, Defense Health Agency director, visited Ramstein, recently, to discuss future changes to the healthcare program for military members.
During Bono’s presentation, she talked about changes the DHA will implement by Jan. 2018.
“We are going to collapse TRICARE Extra and TRICARE Standard into one health plan called TRICARE Select,” said Bono. “You’ll always have the option of TRICARE Prime, but we’re trying to simplify things and create health care plans that are more in line with what commercial and private insurance companies are doing.”
Military members under TRICARE Select will have the option to choose providers on a preferred provider network.
In an effort to streamline the healthcare program, members who are currently in TRICARE Standard or TRICARE Extra will automatically switch over to TRICARE Select. TRICARE PrimeA managed care option available in Prime Service Areas in the United States; you have an assigned primary care manager who provides most of your care.TRICARE Prime members will remain in TRICARE Prime unless they choose to opt out of it.
The DHA is working with the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System office to ensure the transition goes smoothly. Bono asks service members to check DEERS and verify that their information is updated, including any changes in status or added dependents.
“If their DEERS information is completely up-to-date, it will make the roll over easier,” she added.
In addition to this change, the DHA is planning to launch MHS GENESIS, a new electronic health record system available for continental United States, outside of continental United States, and operational service members.
“Wherever our patients are, they will be able to have access to their health record,” explained Bono. “So they will be able to see what is going on with their care, who they have seen, what the diagnosis is, and what the treatment plans are.”
According to Health.mil, MHS GENESIS integrates inpatient and outpatient solutions that will connect medical and dental information across the continuum of care, from point of injury to the military treatment facility.
“I think it will be very helpful for parents to be able to see their kids’ shot records very easily now,” said Bono. “I think this is also going to help our national healthcare challenges in figuring out what we need to do to build a system that is responsive and meets our patients’ needs and helps take care not only their preventative health issues, but also helps people understand what they can do to make sure that they don’t get complications from different illnesses.”
The DHA directs the execution of 10 joint shared services including the health plan (TRICARE), pharmacy, health Information Technology, research and acquisition, education and training, public health, medical logistics, facility management, budget resource management, and contracting.
Disclaimer: Re-published content may have been edited for length and clarity. Read original post.
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Army, Civilian Experts Speak on Bridging from Research to Advanced Development and FieldingU.S. Army Medical Materiel Agency Commander Army Col. Lynn Marm addresses the crowd during a panel session at the Military Health System Research Symposium Aug. 29 in Kissimee, Florida. The panel session focused on challenges in getting medical products to the field. (U.S. Army photo by Greg Pugh)Experts from the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command joined counterparts in military, government, industry and academia in a panel session at the Military Health System Research Symposium in Kissimmee, Florida, Aug. 29, addressing challenges in getting medical products through "the system" and to the field.
To an audience of about 200 attendees, including researchers, developers and vendors, the team described lessons learned and provided candid advice for turning good ideas into tangible solutions applicable to military health care. A central theme from the session was the value of understanding the intended user and taking the time to perform operational testing. In a military medical environment, that could be a clinician in a hospital, a medic on the battlefield, or a Warfighter who has basic combat lifesaver training.
"Answer 'who and where' questions first, and involve users early," said Leigh Anne Alexander, a product manager from the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Agency, a subordinate organization of USAMRMC.
The group also emphasized the value of involving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration "early and often." Speaking from experience, they agreed that engaging with FDA early may smooth the regulatory process, which can be intimating for many smaller companies.
"There are three key pieces to transition a 'good idea' into advanced development," shared Casey Gilbertz, a USAMMA product manager. "Firstly, have a solid commercial market plan. Secondly, have a clear and detailed plan to get through the FDA process. Thirdly, develop a good manufacturing process."
Moderating the session was Capt. Joseph Cohn, Defense Health Agency; and Dr. Patricia Reilly, USAMRMC. In addition to Alexander and Gilbertz, panelists included USAMMA Commander Col. Lynn Marm; Brian Martin, U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity; Lisa Borek, U.S. Army Medical Materiel Development Activity; Lt. Col. Martin LeFrance, Air Force Medical Service Research and Acquisition; Jason Flint, Air Force Medical Evaluation Support; and Herbert Bresler, Battelle Memorial Institute.
The session also addressed medical logistics, advising that fielded products have to be sustainable. Marm described the numerous scientific advancements that have been made during the past 15 years and then reminded the group, "that was the last war."
"The future fight -- which is now --puts us in a position that we have never been in before. We might not have intact communications and technology overmatch," said Marm. "We need the very best and brightest to help us design solutions that are suitable logistically and sustainable in the most austere environments."
Marm said we need industry to work with military medicine to design solutions with future needs in mind. Reflecting on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Marm asked the group, "When we sent our Soldiers into combat thinking they were going to fight a traditional ground war but they faced insurgent fighters instead, who saw that coming?
Answering her own question, she said, "the enemy."
The MHSRS is the Department of Defense's premier scientific annual meeting, which combines three previous conferences, including the former Advanced Technology Applications for Combat Casualty Care Conference; the Air Force Medical Service Medical Research Symposium; and the Navy Medicine Research Conference. By combining these conferences into one event, the meeting serves as a critical strategy session for leaders to set future milestones for the Department of Defense's deployment-related medical research programs, centered on the needs of the Warfighter. This year's symposium was the largest to date, with nearly 3,000 registered attendees.
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