CDC COCA Learn: May 15, 2019

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) sent this bulletin at 05/15/2019 02:06 PM EDT

c o c a learn - c d c clinical outreach and communication activity

Upcoming COCA Call

Most Measles Cases in 25 Years: Is This the End of Measles Elimination in the United States?

Date: Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Time: 2:00-3:00 p.m. (Eastern Time)

In 2000, measles was declared eliminated from the United States. However, the number of measles cases so far in 2019 exceeds the number of annual cases during any entire year since the declaration was made. The number of case reports continues to climb. As of May 10, 2019, 839 measles cases have been confirmed in 23 states. Of these cases, 621 (74%) were reported in children, with 109 (13%) in infants aged <12 months; and 738 (88%) cases have been associated with close-knit communities, primarily in New York. Despite a national measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccination coverage level of about 95%, 1 in 12 children in the United States is not receiving their first dose of MMR vaccine on time, underscoring considerable measles susceptibility across the country. The majority of measles importations into the United States are from unvaccinated U.S. residents who become infected while traveling abroad. Healthcare professionals should remain vigilant about measles.

During this COCA Call, clinicians will learn what makes 2019 a historic year for measles, and what they can do to help identify cases and stop measles transmission.

If you are unable to attend this live COCA Call the webinar will be available to view on-demand a few days after the call takes place. Free continuing education (CE) will be available until June 2021.

Recent COCA Call

Travel-associated Rickettsioses Guidance: Pre-travel Counseling, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Reporting

During this COCA Call, subject matter experts (SMEs) discussed the epidemiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment of three of the most common travel-associated rickettsial diseases include African tick bite fever, Mediterranean spotted fever, and scrub typhus. SMEs also addressed these diseases in the context of pre-travel and post-travel evaluations.

Free CE will be available for this call until June 2021.

On-Demand COCA Calls - Free CE

COCA Calls offer the most up-to-date information and guidance for clinicians about key emergency preparedness and response topics and emerging public health threats. If you were unable to attend a live call, archived COCA Calls are available on-demand. Free CE is available for most COCA Calls.

Emergency Preparedness and Response Training Resources

Emergency Preparedness and Response

This page features scheduled and on-demand access to information on emergency preparedness and response training resources that CDC, other federal agencies, and COCA partners offer—be sure to check out these valuable resources.

COCA partners, do you have a training course that is related to emergency preparedness and response? If so, let us know by sending an email to coca@cdc.gov and we will include your course!

Conference and Training Opportunities

The Conference and Training Opportunities webpage is updated to include conferences from May–December 2019. This page features scheduled and on-demand emergency preparedness and response training resources offered by CDC, other federal agencies, and COCA partners.

May COCA Partner Spotlight

COCA is pleased to feature the United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC) in our May COCA Partner Spotlight! USBC is an independent nonprofit organization that was formed in 1998 and is a coalition of more than 50 organizations. USBC strives toward their vision of thriving families and communities through their values of leadership, integrity and inclusion.

USBC's Mission: To drive collaborative efforts for policy and practices that create a landscape of breastfeeding support across the United States.

USBC is hosting their National Breastfeeding Conference & Convening from June 14-15, 2019 in Bethesda, MD. To learn more about USBC, visit their website and like them on Facebook.

Partnerships with professional healthcare associations are vital to CDC’s ability to share information with clinicians about public health emergencies, CDC guidance, health alert messages, and training opportunities.

Other Training Opportunities

Free CME/CE Expiring Soon: What You Need to Know About Infection Control

In 2017, CDC and Medscape launched a series of six CME/CE activities addressing key infection prevention issues in healthcare facilities. The series is targeted to physicians, nurses, and pharmacists.

These activities are valid for credit for two years. Take the courses now before they expire.

The series includes

CDC Creates Interactive Training for Diagnosis and Management of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

CDC has created a first-of-its-kind education module to help clinicians recognize and diagnose Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF)—a sometimes serious and fatal disease spread by the bite of an infected tick.

"Rocky Mountain spotted fever can be deadly if not treated early – yet cases often go unrecognized because the signs and symptoms are similar to those of many other diseases,” said CDC Director Robert R. Redfield, M.D. “With tickborne diseases on the rise in the U.S., this training will better equip healthcare providers to identify, diagnose, and treat this potentially fatal disease."

The module includes scenarios based on real cases to help healthcare providers recognize the early signs of RMSF and differentiate it from similar diseases. Free CE is available for physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, veterinarians, nurses, epidemiologists, public health professionals, educators, and health communicators.

CDC Grand Rounds

Public Health Grand Rounds is a monthly webcast created to foster discussion on major public health issues. The Grand Rounds sessions also highlight how CDC and its partners are already addressing these challenges and discuss recommendations for future research and practice. Visit Grand Rounds On-Demand to browse upcoming and previous presentations. Free CE is available for most topics.

CDC TRAIN

Looking for training on other public health topics? CDC TRAIN, CDC's online learning system, provides access to more than 1,000 courses that CDC programs, grantees, and other funded partners have developed. Courses offered by CDC providers have been approved and verified by CDC.

CDC Learning Connection

CDC Learning Connection’s May Courses: Infection Prevention and Opioid Use and Pregnancy

The CDC Learning Connection features quality public health learning opportunities from CDC, other federal agencies, and federally funded partners. Through monthly website features, social media, and an e-newsletter, the CDC Learning Connection keeps you informed about public health trainings, including many that offer Free CE.

Discover May’s featured courses on the CDC Learning Connection and earn Free CE.

In honor of Hand Hygiene Day (May 5), learn best practices for nursing home infection prevention and control with CDC’s Nursing Home Infection Preventionist Training Course. Learn how to reduce pathogen transmission, healthcare-associated infections, and antibiotic resistance.
The number of pregnant women with opioid use disorder at labor and delivery in the United States has more than quadrupled from 1999 to 2014. This National Women’s Health Week (May 12-18), take CDC’s Opioid Use and Pregnancy training to learn about safer opioid prescribing across all stages of pregnancy.

Clinician’s Corner - Featuring Kristina M. Angelo, DO, MPH&TM

Welcome to the Clinician’s Corner! Each month we feature a CDC clinician, a clinician who has collaborated with COCA, or someone who has presented on a COCA Call. This month, we’re featuring Kristina M. Angelo, DO, MPH&TM.

Dr. Angelo is an infectious diseases physician with expertise in travelers’ health and tropical medicine. She works in CDC's Division of Global Migration and Quarantine, Travelers’ Health Branch (proposed). She also practices both travel medicine and infectious disease medicine at Emory University hospitals and clinics. She is the project officer for GeoSentinel, a global disease surveillance system that reports on travel-related illnesses. She has a particular interest in infectious disease epidemiology, the clinical practice of tropical medicine, pre-travel vaccination, students studying abroad and the illnesses they encounter, and outbreak response.

Dr. Angelo attended the University of San Diego for her undergraduate degree and received her Doctor of Osteopathy from Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine. She completed her Masters in Public Health and Tropical Medicine from Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.

COCA Tip

Clinical Update: Tafenoquine Approved for Malaria Prophylaxis and Treatment

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the drug tafenoquine for two indications:

Prophylaxis of malaria
Radical cure¹ of Plasmodium vivax malaria

Tafenoquine use in people with G6PD deficiency or unknown G6PD status is contraindicated because tafenoquine can cause severe hemolytic anemia in people with G6PD deficiency.

Additional Information

¹Also referred to as radical treatment, radical cure eliminates dormant P. vivax and P. ovale liver-stage parasites (hypnozoites).

The Emergency Risk Communication Branch in the Division of Emergency Operations, Center for Preparedness and Response manages all COCA products.

For information about this update or other clinical issues, or to send your feedback, please contact us at coca@cdc.gov.

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