Public Health Emergency Notification System &

   

  Local Information Network Communications System

The Public Health Emergency Notification System (PHENS) and the Local Information Network Communications System (LINCS) at the Somerset County Health Department deliver the first-line means of public health notification and communication between the county health department and our public health and community partners.  Through broadcast fax and e-mail communications, PHENS currently serve as early warning systems to alert local, state and federal authorities and the media about urgent health threats and about the necessary prevention and response actions. link

		With access to electronic means of public health information through the utilization of secure Internet connections, PHENS and LINCS have expanded the capacity for local health officials throughout the county to instantaneously access and share disease reports, emergency response plans, and CDC diagnostic and treatment guidelines.  These notification systems have significantly enhanced and improved the communication channels between local health departments to one another, as well as to critical public health institutions such as hospitals, laboratories, the Office of Emergency Management (OEM), Emergency Medical Systems (EMS), and healthcare providers.

In addition to the “traditional” public health entities, LINCS has enabled local, state, and federal health authorities to communicate and coordinate rapidly and securely with other community institutions such as animal health professionals, law enforcement, school administration, local businesses, and other community agencies and organizations throughout Somerset County.

Community Health Alert Information Network (CHAIN)

	The Somerset County CHAIN has developed from a one-page list of phone numbers to a comprehensive e-mail and blast-fax-based system where there are currently over 1,000 contacts that belong to one or more of approximately 100 various distribution lists.

As a CHAIN member you would receive public health information that is pertinent and relevant to your particular establishment.  You may receive an alert which may require the immediate attention or response from your agency; or an advisory, update or general information where you and your organization are instantly notified of public health events as they unfold at the global, national, state or county and local levels.

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For more information on this valuable public health service, please contact Sumantha Banerjee, Somerset County LINCS Coordinator, through e-mail or phone: (908) 231-7155.

CLICK HERE to begin implementing PHENS/LINCS at your establishment, agency, or organization.