Posted on January 3, 2002 at 4:22 p.m.
BIRMINGHAM, AL — The Center for Disaster Preparedness at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) has launched an interactive educational Web site for clinicians on the diagnosis and treatment of rare infections and exposure to bioterrorist agents, such as anthrax and smallpox.
“It is the first Web site of its kind that we’re aware of,” says Margaret Tresler, program manager for UAB’s Center for Disaster Preparedness. “Other sites provide information, but our site offers continuing education credit required of many healthcare professionals to maintain their licenses.”
Although recent terrorist events have prompted the launch of numerous bioterrorism-related Web sites, work on the UAB site began more than a year ago with a grant from the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. “One objective was to create awareness among healthcare professionals of the potential for a bioterrorist incident,” says Tresler. “That is no longer necessary. Now, clinicians are seeking information about how to recognize and respond to such an event. UAB’s site provides this information.”
The site currently offers five online courses from the UAB Office of Continuing Medical Education, tailored to emergency department clinicians including physicians, nurses, radiologists, pathologists and infection control practitioners. Courses cover identification of five potential bioterrorist agents and five commonly associated syndromes, and how to recognize a bioterrorist outbreak. There is no cost to take the courses and each offers one hour of continuing education credit.
Courses include case-based scenarios and photos followed by multiple choice questions and answers. “If a wrong answer is selected, an explanation follows telling why the answer is incorrect,” says Tresler. “The interactive modules are designed to be easily accessible and user-friendly, keeping in mind that clinicians do not have a lot of time.”
Courses were developed by a diverse group of researchers and clinicians representing various fields, including emergency medicine, health administration, public health, nursing and education. Lead investigators for the project are Dr. Thomas Terndrup, professor and chair of the department of emergency medicine at UAB and director of UAB’s Center for Disaster Preparedness, and Norman Weissman, Ph.D., professor of health services administration and medicine and director of UAB’s Center for Outcomes Research and Education.