[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 111 (Wednesday, June 9, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32355-32356]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-13006]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[60Day-04-53]


Proposed Data Collections Submitted for Public Comment and 
Recommendations

    In compliance with the requirement of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 for opportunity for public comment on 
proposed data collection projects, the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (CDC) will publish periodic summaries of proposed projects. 
To request more information on the proposed projects or to obtain a 
copy of the data collection plans and instruments, call the CDC Reports 
Clearance Officer on (404)498-1210.
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other 
forms of information technology. Send comments to Seleda Perryman, CDC 
Assistant Reports Clearance Officer, 1600 Clifton Road, MS-E11, 
Atlanta, GA 30333 or send an e-mail to [email protected]. Written comments 
should be received within 60 days of this notice.

Proposed Project

    State-based Evaluation of the Alert Notification Component of CDC's 
Epidemic Information Exchange (Epi-X) Secure Public Health 
Communications

[[Page 32356]]

Network (OMB No. 0920--0636)--Extension Epidemiology Program Office 
(EPO), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
    Great attention has been focused on improving secure public health 
communications networks for the dissemination of critical disease 
outbreak and/or bioterrorism-related events, which may have multi-
jurisdictional involvement and cause disease and death within a short 
time-frame. A central component of the mission of the CDC's 
Epidemiology Program Office (EPO) is to strengthen the nation's public 
health infrastructure by coordinating public health surveillance at CDC 
and providing domestic and international support through scientific 
communications and terrorism preparedness and emergency response. The 
Office of Scientific and Health Communication's Epidemic Information 
Exchange (Epi-X) provides CDC and its state and local partners and 
collaborators with a secure public health communications network 
intended for routine and emergent information exchange in a secure 
environment.
    The purpose of the information gathered during this notification 
proficiency testing exercise is to evaluate the extent to which new 
registrants and currently authorized users of the Epidemic Information 
Exchange (Epi-X) are able to utilize alert notification functionality 
to minimize or prevent unnecessary injury or disease-related morbidity 
and mortality through the use of secure communications and rapid 
notification systems. In this case, notification alerts would be sent 
to targeted public health professionals through a ``barrage'' of office 
cell phone, home telephone, and pager calls to rapidly inform key 
health authorities from multidisciplinary backgrounds and multiple 
jurisdictions of evolving and critical public health information, and 
assist with the decision making process. Presently, the necessity of 
this evaluation process is timely because of ongoing terrorism threats 
and acts perpetrated worldwide.
    The survey information will be gathered through an online 
questionnaire format, and help evaluate user comprehension and facility 
solely with the targeted notification and rapid alerting 
functionalities of Epi-X. The questionnaire will consist of both 
closed- and open-ended items, and will be administered through 
Zoomerang, an online questionnaire program, or as a last resort, by 
telephone. Approximately 6,000 Epi-X users from every state of the 
union will be asked to volunteer input (in a 5-10 question format) 
about their experiences using the alert notification functionalities of 
the Epi-X communications system. There will be no cost to respondents, 
whose participation will be strictly voluntary. The estimated 
annualized burden is 500 hours.

 
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                                                                       No. of       Average burden
                  Respondents                         No. of       responses per     per response   Total burden
                                                   respondents       respondent        (in hrs)         hours
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State Epidemiologists and critical state public            2000                1            15/60           500
 health emergency responders...................
                                                ------------------
    Total......................................            2000   ...............  ...............          500
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    Dated: June 2, 2004.
Alvin Hall,
Director, Management Analysis and Services Office, Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 04-13006 Filed 6-8-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P