Personal Protective Equipment Key Informant Interviews

Form Approved

OMB Approval No. 0920-1154

Expiration Date: 03/31/2026

Personal Protective Equipment Key Informant Interviews

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Key Informant Interview Questionnaire:

Background Information to share: Discuss the ask and refresh their memory.

Note for Interviewer to read to interviewee: On May 6th, CDC asked state and other jurisdictional health departments to make personal protective equipment (PPE) available to dairy farm, poultry farm, and slaughterhouse workers. This would consist of a one-time distribution of PPE from existing stockpiles. This was in the setting of a multistate outbreak of avian Influenza A(H5N1) in livestock and workers. (PAUSE) If you’d like to take a moment to refresh your memory or if you didn’t receive this, please feel free to take time to review the attached notice (need to send), which was received by partners around that date. We would like to get your thoughts, perceptions, and feedback about this ask from CDC. This should not take more than 30-45 minutes of your time. This information will be kept confidential and will be used to better inform future asks and communication efforts.

1. Tell us about your thoughts related to the May 6^th, 2024, “one time PPE Distribution Request.” What was your reaction to this request?

   1. (Interviewer note – optional question) Tell us about experiences and reactions you may have heard your colleagues share about the May 6^th, 2024, PPE distribution ask.

2. Can you describe any activities that occurred as a result of receiving this ask? How did this request play out in your jurisdiction specifically—can you walk us through the process from initial planning to deployment of supplies?

3. Tell us about any barriers that your health department/jurisdiction experienced with this request (Interviewer note of examples: it was interpreted as an unfunded mandate; leadership in some states interpret CDC “recommendations” as requirements)

4. Tell us about any barriers regarding distributing PPE (Interviewer note of examples: lack of staff, lack of funding for shipment, higher competing priorities, impact of being a state with no positive farms, etc.).

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to be 45 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: CDC/ATSDR Reports Clearance Officer; Paperwork Reduction Project (0920-1154); MS H21-8; 1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, Ga. 30333.

5. Tell us about any barriers you may have noted, if any, related to offering and distributing PPE specific to the dairy, cattle and/or slaughterhouse industries. (Interviewers note of examples: employees needed different types of PPE that weren’t available, concern about heat, concern about fit testing, lack of understanding or concern about risk, language challenges, lack of technology for social media, fear about legal status in the country, etc.)?

   1. Can you share differences, if any, with challenges faced by the poultry industry? (Interviewers note of examples: see examples in previous question)

6. Did you make any adjustments to your initial plan when you encountered any of the barriers you described? And were those adjustments effective at overcoming the barrier?

7. These questions are related to PPE requests. This will help us to better understand distribution pathways. Can you share your thoughts about the following:

   1. Why was PPE requested from the one-time PPE distribution activity?

      1. Question Probes: 1) There was not sufficient PPE on hand to meet demand; 2) There was sufficient PPE, but an extra supply would be helpful to have; 3) There were concerns that this request was mandatory.

   2. Who requested PPE (e.g., a local health department, farms, what specific organizations?)

   3. For whom was PPE requested (e.g., local health department requested on behalf of a small farm or farm requested on behalf of employees, etc.)?

   4. To whom was the PPE request made (e.g., state health department, Strategic National Stockpile, etc.)?

8. Is there anything more you can share about the types of pathways or methods that were used to distribute PPE? How might this be improved in the future? (Note to interviewer: note any key relationships, key partnerships, etc.).

9. Tell us about what types of PPE you heard were most often needed or requested. This could be from health departments (e.g., local health departments) or agricultural partners/ organizations, if any, related to the May 6^th, 2024, one time PPE distribution activity?

   1. Were the requested components of PPE available in your state stockpile or local cache or did you need to make a request to the Strategic National Stockpile? Which components were available in your stockpile, what components did you need to obtain from the SNS? Are there any components that you noted that do not exist in any stockpile? (Interviewers note: Feel free to share details.)

10. What, if any, types of dairy farms, poultry farms, slaughterhouse workers, farmworker organizations, agricultural businesses, or related service organizations in the state did you hear were making requests for PPE? These organizations could be large dairy operations or small farms.

11. In what ways, if any, could the ask and messaging from the PPE distribution request have been more helpful? (Interviewers note: assessing for communications from CDC. Can share: As a reminder the ask was: CDC asked states to help make PPE from their jurisdictional stockpiles available to dairy farm, poultry farm, and slaughterhouse workers to protect them against Avian Influenza A(H5N1).