COVID-19 Response & Recovery –
The International Association of Certified ISAOs Launches
The National Health Care Communications System, “NHCC-LifeRing,”
to Connect Health Facilities Nationwide
Kennedy Space Center, FL – The International Association of Certified ISAOs (IACI), a non-profit, global, public and private-sector association is pleased to announce the immediate availability of the National Health Care Communications System’s LifeRing (NHCC-LifeRing)
As COVID-19 cases spike to record numbers, response and recovery communications within and across healthcare facilities is more important than ever. There is a dire need for an immediate availability to access secure, real-time communications as quickly as possible on both large scale and one-to-one situations to provide a common operational picture in order to manage assets and resources. A single network that brings together local, state, regional and national response and recovery plan efforts and activities as well as testing facilities and clinical support coordination.
NHCC-LifeRing is a Communication Command and Control Operations Center (CCOP) provided to hospitals, healthcare workers and first responders nationwide as a digital platform where they can communicate and share COVID-19 related needs or available supplies
as well as current critical-care infrastructure and information.
NHCC-LifeRing represents a breakthrough in secure, encrypted and interoperable tactical communications that harnesses a highly portable, communications network for the nation’s healthcare infrastructure.
NHCC-LifeRing quickly facilitates the ‘real-time’ communication exchange among healthcare workers by providing a shared Common Operational Picture (COP) system in a secure, segmented group environment. Everyone on the system has a shared map showing the location of hospitals, testing sites or other relevant map markers as well the other users who are “online.” Tapping on a hospital Marker Symbol will bring up detailed information on the facility as well as a list of published supplies or equipment they either need or have available to share. Photos, videos, audio files and most common document types can be attached to the Marker to provide the any/all level of detail.
Tapping on a User Symbol enables, direct, one-touch calling or messaging for information or resource sharing. There is even integrated Push-to-Talk (PTT), a whiteboard feature for drawing on the map and the ability to declare an emergency on yourself within your group.
NHCC-LifeRing has been tailored for day-to-day and large-scale preparedness during the COVID-19 pandemic. It can be easily customized to serve ongoing healthcare and first responder needs. It is interoperable with existing local and state emergency First Responder communications.
NHCC-LifeRing, led by IACI, is in partnership with Advanced Ground Information Systems, Inc. (AGIS), The Population Health Information Sharing and Analysis Organization (ISAO), and Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Effectively “preserving health by strengthening healthcare communications,” the NHCS LifeRing system is a “public/private unity-of-effort” that is supported by numerous organizations and their many varied industry experts, says Deborah Kobza, IACI’s President. “Given the current nationwide rise in Covid-19 novel virus infections, as well as the longer-term impacts that this pandemic has on recovering patients, and as a result, on the healthcare system as a whole, we feel strongly that NHCC-LifeRing will be a huge benefit to frontline workers who are striving to remain agile and ready to address the needs of the communities they serve, their teams of medical workers, and the many partners they’ll be able to work with and advise as part of the wider NHCC-LifeRing community,” says Kobza. “We all need to ensure that we can work together to help overcome the ever-changing challenges continuing to result from not only this current pandemic, but from any future medical and healthcare crises.”
About Advanced Ground Information Systems (AGIS)
Advanced Ground Information Systems (AGIS) — Providing the technology behind LifeRing, this organization has provided the breakthrough infrastructure for real-time and secure communications among military, first responders and other critical infrastructure personnel. In LifeRing, AGIS has created a secure, fully operationalized, highly portable and tactical communications tool that enables rapid, protected and effective information sharing to support preparedness, response and recovery operations.
About the Population Health ISAO
The Population Health ISAO — The security intelligence community for healthcare professionals to work together on situational awareness needs, regulatory requirements, risk identification, threat response efforts and more, this ISAO works direction with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Through this partnership the Population ISAO uses HHS guidelines to support the National Preparedness Goal for a secure, resilient nation and provides access to real-time intelligence information, training and secure healthcare communications to all of its members.
About Amazon Web Services
Amazon Web Services (AWS) – By hosting NHCC-LifeRing, AWS provides a highly reliable, secure and scalable cloud infrastructure to power the secure and rapid communications that LifeRing enables. The company’s data centers provide multiple layers of operation and physical security to ensure NHCC integrity and business continuity. and its highly reliable, secure and scalable platform.
About IACI
The International Association of Certified ISAOs (IACI), headquartered at the IACI-CERT, Center for Space Education, Kennedy Space Center, FL is the trusted “Center-of-Gravity” with laser-point focus on the challenges facing critical infrastructure and government and for the global community to advance security resilience by accelerating information sharing and response supported by best practice research adoption and education. An authorized Information Sharing & Analysis Organization by U.S. Presidential Executive Order 13691 and the 2015 Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act, IACI enables, connects and promotes private- and public-sector security resiliency planning, supports operationalizing and connecting ISAO communities underpinned by IACINet, the global threat intelligence and defensive measures information sharing and response infrastructure.
For additional information to become an IACI Member, participate with various critical infrastructure ISAOs or to establish an ISAO…
202-900-7500
support@iacicert.org