West Virginia Universitys Virtual Medical Campus (VMC) recently received close to $900,000 in funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as part of $26.6 million awarded nationwide to provide bioterrorism continuing education training and curriculum enhancement programs. The award will enhance the VMC program development that has been made possible with funding secured for the program by Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.).
The VMC is among organizations from 23 states that received funding through a competitive application process, officials say. The purpose of the funding is to develop and deliver continuing education for healthcare professions such as public health and direct-care providers.
“This is a great opportunity for the VMC and for WVU ,”said Dr. John Weete, vice president for research and economic development at WVU .”The VMC and its partners developed an excellent proposal for this highly competitive program.”
The grants are the first awards made through the Health and Human ServicesBioterrorism Training and Curriculum Development Program. The new program is part of a total federal investment of $4.4 billion in fiscal year 2003 for bioterrorism preparedness. It is administered by Health and Human ServicesHealth Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The program was created with the passage of the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002.
The proposed projects are for the Continuing Education for Health Professionals component of HRSA s program. The VMC s project,”West Virginia Prepares: Continuing Education Partnership,”will provide continuing education to the public healthcare workforce and direct care providers throughout West Virginia.The VMC will work in a collaborative effort with these six project partners including the WVU Office of Rural Health, West Virginia Area of
Health Education Centers (AHECs), West Virginia Bureau for Public Health (WVBPH), West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, the Departments of Community Medicine and Medicine (Section of Infectious Diseases) in the School of Medicine at the WVU Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center, and Community Research Associates, Inc. (CRA).
“Everyone worked hard to develop this proposal,”said Dr. Floyd K.”Rusty”Russell, director for the VMC .”The spirit of cooperation among the project partners is the key factor in our success.”
The project team will develop three courses to provide training in terrorist event recognition; acute care needs for vulnerable populations such as pediatrics and geriatrics; alerting the public health systems of an event at the community, state and national levels; and participating in a coordinated, interdisciplinary response to terrorist events and other public health emergencies. Videoconferences will be conducted after each course. Exercises that provide a practice opportunity for the online training will follow the courses and videoconferences. Community Research Associates, Inc. will conduct the exercises.
The Web-based courses will provide an innovative distance education approach for developing and delivering preparedness education and training. The continuing education delivery model that this project will use is a distance education, blended learning model that is a combination of videoconferencing, Web-based learning and a hands-on (table width=100%top training exercise) experience with disaster planning and response.