Developing Training to Prepare Human Health Science Students to Face Biological Incidents

Peña²,

Ollero³

et al. 2017

EDULEARN Proceedings

Self Cite

An innovative teaching group at De Montfort University (DMU, UK) and at the University of Alcalá (Spain) has developed specific training to prepare human health students to respond to biological incidents. The purpose of this training is to provide a basic understanding of environmental toxicology, recovery, public health and medical preparedness to protect humans and minimise the spread of biological hazards. We have followed previous experience gained when responding to the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in Makeni, Sierra Leone (West Africa). Previously, to create this training, a series of basic competences to respond to biological incidents were created by our group for undergraduate students [1] following the European Commission competences specified for medical responders [2]. A critical part of any intervention plan to respond to these incidents is to implement a quick response to protect the public and actions to minimise the occurrence of infections and recover the environment affected by the biological agent(s) since they can subsequently impact humans. A specific short training course/workshop (3 hours long) has been created in conjunction with a series of specific lectures on emerging pathogens, biological hazards and prevention, medical preparedness and public health. Students were provided with a biological incident scenario affecting different environments (open water and food production systems) and they needed to tailor a basic recovery strategy following the novel methodology and guidelines to tailor a recovery response to biological incidents developed by Public Health England (PHE) [3]. Our recovery training has been tested within different undergraduate and postgraduate programmes (BSc Biomedical and BMedSci Medical Science; MSc Advances in Biomedical Science) at DMU during the 2016/17 academic course; we have determined high levels of student satisfaction and engagement. Currently we are in the process of validating this training by delivering it in other European universities and/or different health care programmes. Thus, we delivered a modified version of this recovery training/workshop to third year pharmacy students (n=101) enrolled in the module Biological Analysis & Laboratory Diagnostic at the Universidad de San Pablo CEU (Spain) in April 2017. Pharmacy students gain an appropriate knowledge on infectious diseases, microbiology and parasitology during the first two years of study, so we decided to reduce the length of the workshop to 1.5 hours. A validated feedback-questionnaire was distributed that has revealed the following initial impressions (33 students completed the questionnaire): 93.9% of students enjoyed the different exercises created (45.4% agreed; 48.5% strongly agreed); only 6.1% of them did not (6.1% disagreed; 0% strongly disagreed). 87.9% of these students reported that the novel PHE resources used aided their learning on environmental recovery and restoration. Finally, 93.9 % of students (42.4% agreed; 51.5% strongly agreed) indicated that they have gained knowledge ...

Section: Biological Incident Response Trainingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Recovery Training for Biological Incidents: Impressions From Pharmacy Students

Peña²,

Ollero³

et al. 2017

EDULEARN Proceedings

Self Cite

“…We selected this virus as it is threatening countries in Western Europe [11], including the UK [12]. This research-led training was based on a successful novel teaching experience created by our team [13] and was aimed to assure the relevance that biomedical scientists have as key health professionals in any first response team in the aftermath of a biological incident or an outbreak of infection. A more detailed description of this workshop will be published in the next few months, which can be found in Peña-Fernández et al (2017 [14]).…”

Section: Changes Undertaken In the "Medical Microbiology" Modulementioning

confidence: 99%

Curriculum Modifications for Teaching Parasitology and Infectious Diseases in a Biomedical Science Degree

Ioannou²,

Lobo-Bedmar³

et al. 2017

ICERI Proceedings

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Recent outbreaks threatening public health involving contaminated water or food with different microorganisms such as Escherichia coli or Cyclospora spp. in Europe as well as the 2014-16 Ebola crisis in West Africa have highlighted the relevance of teaching parasitology and infectious diseases to future biomedical scientists. The BSc Biomedical Science (BMS) programme at De Montfort University (DMU, Leicester, UK) is accredited by the Institute of Biomedical Sciences (IBMS). However, the dedicated time to study these topics was very little, limited to two 15 credit modules focused on general and basic medical microbiology. A series of important modifications have been undertaken since 2016 to ensure that our graduates receive comprehensive knowledge in parasitology/infectious diseases following the subject-specific threshold standards described by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA, 2015). New lectures in these topics (virus, fungi, helminths, infectious diseases) were incorporated in our Basic Microbiology level 4 module after expanding this to 30 credits in the academic course 2016/17. Highly specialised training related with emerging parasites (e.g. Cyclospora, microsporidia) and haemorrhagic fever virus (e.g. Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever virus) was introduced in our level 6 Medical Microbiology module (15 credits), based on a successful novel teaching experience created by first responders to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Validated feedback questionnaires to assess the training were collected as well as final module level feedback (MLF) for each module through Blackboard. Students have highlighted high levels of engagement in both modules, specifically in the training provided in Medical Microbiology (n=121). Thus, some students have highlighted in the MLF that the case studies (e.g. related with free-living amoebas and Cyclospora spp.) "improved my understanding" and were "engaging". The specific questionnaire highlighted that 77.5% of final year students enjoyed the novel workshop created to respond to an outbreak of infection affecting the UK following evidence-based public health methodology. However, the module that showed most improvement in student satisfaction was Basic Microbiology (n=196), which showed a significant increase from 20% in the 2015/16 academic year to 64% in the current academic session. The MLF for Basic Microbiology also reported the following results: 95% (41% definitely agree, 54% agree) of students highlighted that this first year module provided them with opportunities to apply what they learnt; and 94% considered that the feedback provided was clear and fair. Although these results should be considered as preliminary, we consider that the initial changes undertaken in the BMS programme at DMU to date could improve students' understanding of emerging diseases, specifically about how to study and prevent emerging infectious diseases to protect public health. Future proposed improvements include the development of a complete elearning package for students and academics for ...

“…However, insufficient training is provided in Europe to face future crises, particularly amongst clinicians and other health professionals that would be part of the initial response [9]. Thus, our teaching innovation group at De Montfort University (DMU, Leicester, UK) in conjunction with support from EU researchers and first responders (biomedical scientists) during the Ebola outbreak are developing training to respond to biological incidents and outbreak of infection specifically designed for undergraduate human health science students [2][3]10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Initial Outcomes of Introducing the Study of the Ebola Virus in a Biomedical Science Degree

Broadbent²,

Choi³

2018

INTED Proceedings

Self Cite

The Ebola virus disease (EVD) caused by Zaire ebolavirus (EBOV) primarily affected three countries in West Africa during 2013-2016: Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. The index case was infected in Guinea in December 2013, and subsequently spread to neighbouring countries. According to Ebola Situation Reports from the World Health Organisation, a total of 28,616 Ebola cases were reported in West Africa during the pandemic, with 11,310 deaths. This serious pandemic has highlighted gaps and lack of resources and capabilities in health care systems not only in developing countries but also in Western countries that were impacted when responding to the Ebola outbreak. Thus, serious crossborder biological incidents and outbreaks of infection can dramatically threaten human health. However, they can be can be addressed by providing an effective and rapid response from different experts, health professionals and authorities when there are appropriate tools, capabilities and understanding of these biological hazards. Thus, a series of initiatives were put in place at De Montfort University (DMU, UK) in 2016 to provide appropriate knowledge on infectious diseases to BSc Biomedical Science (BMS) students following the subject-specific threshold standards described by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA, 2015) [1]. Curriculum changes were undertaken mostly in two modules: Basic Microbiology (level 4), after expanding this to 30 credits in the academic course 2016/17; and Medical Microbiology (level 6; 15 credits). Between the comprehensive curriculum changes performed, one of the changes that raised notable interest in BMS students was the introduction of a lecture/seminar in EBOV following our experience as first responders during the Ebola outbreak working as biomedical scientists in different Ebola laboratories built by Public Health England (PHE) in Sierra Leone. The novel methods for teaching EBOV and haemorrhagic infectious diseases have been previously described by our group in Peña-Fernández et al. (2016, 2017) [2,3]; briefly we created two sessions with different degrees of difficulties to be delivered to BMS students studying level 4 or 6, respectively. Students enrolled in Medical Microbiology (level 6) also completed a workshop to respond to outbreaks of infection and protect the public following the steps of evidencebased public health methodology and the lessons learnt when responding to the EBOV outbreak in West Africa in 2015. In this paper we provide a short description of the methods used and recent student feedback collected during the delivery of this workshop in October 2017. The paper will also discuss future improvements that we are undertaking to increase the knowledge of BMS and other health science students including the creation of an e-learning unit to facilitate the study and teaching of EBOV. This novel teaching and learning resource will be publicly available from the DMU website during the first months of 2018; and it is being created following the experience of the development of the first unit...