Pandemic Influenza Plan - Questar III

Appendix 13-C
• The HERDS system can map its reports to database tables for linkage and view to other existing
applications.
• Archived reports show historic data entered into repeating surveys and allow for trending.
• SAS internet integration allows for real time graphical display of snapshots of resource groups,
specific resources and facility reporting or trends in a given resource or across resource groups
over the course of event.
3. System Access
HERDS is an access restricted application available on the secure NYS Commerce (HPN) website which
authorized users may log in to using standard, commercial, internet browsers. All state and local health
departments, all NYS hospitals, and several out-of-state hospitals in New Jersey and Connecticut have
users that are currently accessing HERDS.
• Roles based access: Access to the HERDS application itself is via role-based assignment in the
NYSDOH Communications Directory. Roles in the communications directory reflecting hospital
or public health functional titles, as well as specific HERDS functional roles are automatically
linked to various application roles that have varying levels of access to HERDS for read only,
read/write, and available report and analysis views that are restricted by jurisdictional differences
and differences in an individual’s incident command responsibility. Each organization determines
which of their personnel are appropriate to serve in each role, and by virtue of entering the name,
contact information, and user ID of those individuals to those roles, they are given immediate and
appropriate access to HERDS. Each role is clearly defined to assist organizations in proper
assignment of their personnel.
• Emergency Access: special, organization-level Commerce accounts are available to
organizations for use of HERDS during emergencies, under the extenuating circumstance where
no regular HERDS or Commerce users with active accounts are available to access the system.
These “Emergency Response Accounts (ERA)” are only active during emergencies and are held in
secure location within the facility for use only in the circumstance described above. Unlike
normal user accounts, these accounts are deactivated immediately and passwords are changed at
the end of the event.
4. Technical Architecture
HERDS is fully compliant with PHIN and NHII information technology functions and standards.
HERDS is assembled using J2EE compliant and database agnostic, enhanced, NYS developed,
transportable general application tools (modules/classes): foundation classes and beans containing
transportable business logic controlling environmental information, logging and permission/access and
application level classes that control presentation and application functionality under the BEA application
server environment, as well as class for role based application access control via our NYSDOH
Communications Directory. These classes are extensively used in NYSDOH application development for
exchange and sharing of critical data between healthcare provider, state and local health departments. The
GIS system is based on a COTS product, ArcIMS.
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