Evaluating basic training for prevention and response to biological incidents

Resumen

Biomedical scientists were critical of the response to the unprecedented 2014-16 Ebola crisis in West Africa, highlighting the relevance of teaching skills to respond to biological incidents. However, time dedicated to studying these topics in the Biomedical Science degree at De Montfort University was minimal and thus a group of academics and first responders designed training for human health science students on how to respond to biological incidents encompassing basic competences identified by the European Commission. Moreover, curriculum modifications were undertaken in the BSc Biomedical Science Programme in 2016/17 to ensure graduates received comprehensive knowledge regarding emerging diseases, public health and response to biological incidents. The syllabus of the module �Basic Microbiology� was comprehensively revised after expanding the module to 30 credits. The final year module �Medical Microbiology� was also modified to introduce novel training related to response to biological incidents using experience gained in the field during the Ebola outbreak. During this training, final year students (n=121) tailored an intervention programme to respond to an outbreak following an evidence-based public health methodology with 87.1% of the class indicating that they received appropriate knowledge to respond to biological incidents. This novel training could facilitate the acquisition of developed competences to respond to biological events to protect the public.