Backgrounders
	National Microbiology Laboratory
	Health Canada's Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response
	The Federal Nuclear Emergency Plan
	Food safety in Canada
	Pharmaceutical Purchases for Canada's National Emergency Stockpile
	Anthrax
	Health Security Preparedness at Health Canada
	Canada - Working with our Partners
	Network of Canadian Laboratories to Respond to Bioterrorist Threats
	Smallpox
	Health Canada's role in the Global Ministerial Group on Health Security and Bioterrorism
	Joint Radiological Emergency Response Plan

Information

March 2002

Canada's National Emergency Services Stockpile system (NESS)

• Health Canada's Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response maintains a national emergency stockpile system that has a value estimated to be in excess of $300 million to provide emergency supplies quickly to provinces and territories when requested. A 24-hour response capability is maintained.
• The National Emergency Services Stockpile (NESS) is funded and held by Health Canada. The department manages the NESS by assessing and refurbishing stockpile units, and distributing medical and pharmaceutical supplies at the request of provinces.
• The system consists of a central depot in Ottawa, seven federal warehouses (includes Ottawa Depot) across Canada, and 1,600 pre-positioned supply centres under the combined management of the provinces and federal government.
• The NESS contains similar supplies that you would expect to find in a hospital, from beds and blankets to a supply of pharmaceuticals and a range of antibiotics. It includes 186 emergency/mobile hospitals, with 200 beds in each. These are positioned throughout the country. The units can be deployed on short notice (within 24 hours) to be set up in existing buildings such as schools and community centres.
• Additional capacities include supplies to set up first aid and triage stations. Pre-positioned supply centres have a mix of supplies depending on their location and anticipated emergencies that might occur.
• While some of the emergency/mobile hospitals are stored across the country, most drugs are held for Health Canada by the pharmaceutical manufacturers in order to ensure that they are rotated thus ensuring we have up-to-date drugs when required.
• The Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response provided beds, blankets, and boxes of personal care products to support the 47,000 stranded passengers, who had landed at a number of Canadians airports after being diverted from flights headed to theUnited States on September 11, 2001. Supplies were provided within 24 hours and many products taken from the central warehouse in Ottawa were transported by Department of National Defence aircraft.