Recruitment Email Invitation

Attachment F: Recruitment e-mail invitation to answer online assessment

Subject line: Invitation to Participate in CDC Assessment about Non-pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs) for Pandemic Influenza

Dear Colleague:

We would like to invite you to answer an online assessment designed to assess the feasibility and acceptability of implementing the recommended non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) for mitigating pandemic influenza. We would like to assess the feasibility (capability) of implementing the recommended NPIs by state, territorial, and local public health jurisdictions; the level of acceptability of (compliance with) the recommended NPIs by community stakeholders and partners; and the barriers (factors) that may make difficult or impede the implementation of the recommended NPIs, during severe influenza pandemics. Your agency’s participation is important.

Please respond to this e-mail invitation by [DATE] to confirm your participation. We will forward a link to the assessment within [#] days of receipt of your confirmed participation. Completing the online assessment is expected to take no longer than 90 minutes. We would like to have the assessment completed by [DATE].

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the Community Mitigation Guidelines to Prevent Pandemic Influenza – United States, 2017 (https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/66/rr/pdfs/rr6601.pdf) in April 2017. The guidelines serve as a pre-pandemic planning tool for state, territorial, and local public health officials and include updated recommendations on the use of NPIs in community settings from the earliest stages of an influenza pandemic.

Your responses will be compiled with responses from other jurisdictions. Responses from this assessment will help CDC to

• Identify issues raised by public health officials such as yourself about the feasibility and acceptability of implementing NPIs during severe influenza pandemics.

• Highlight expressed barriers to implementing NPIs in community settings.

• Update sections of the 2017 Community Mitigation Guidelines, as needed, to enhance their usefulness for pre-pandemic planning.

The online assessment is being sent to public health officials in all 50 US states, the District of Columbia, and 8 US territories and a sample of local health departments. CDC worked with key public health partners – ASTHO, CSTE, NACCHO, and NPHIC – to identify eligible respondents who were thought to be involved with emergency preparedness activities, experienced in pandemic influenza planning, and/or knowledgeable about community mitigation measures and NPIs.

You are among those selected. Your participation is voluntary. You can opt not to participate, or to refuse to answer any question, or to withdraw from participation at any time without loss of any services or support from HHS or CDC.

If you have any questions, please send an e-mail to ___________________ [This space will be filled by The MayaTech Corporation or NACCHO depending on the type of public health official (PHO) receiving this recruitment e-mail invitation – state/territorial PHO or local PHO, respectively], which is helping CDC with this effort, at ___________ [The contact e-mail [email protected] or research@naccho.org will be listed here depending on who distributes this recruitment e-mail invitation – The MayaTech Corporation or NACCHO, respectively] or Dr. Noreen Qualls, the CDC Project Co-Lead, at [email protected]. Thank you in advance for your participation.

Sincerely yours,

Noreen Qualls, DrPH, MSPH Faruque Ahmed, MD, PhD, MPH

Project Co-Lead Project Co-Lead

Division of Global Migration and Quarantine (DGMQ)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)