# Presentation: 132159

## National Bioterrorism Hospital Preparedness Program:Education and Training

**Terri Spear, Ed.M.**
- Bioterrorism Education and Training Specialist
- Emergency Preparedness Evaluation and Specialty Branch
- Special Programs Bureau
- Health Resources and Services Administration
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
- Rockville, MD

## Program Mission

- “Ready Hospitals and supporting health care systems to deliver coordinated and effective care to victims of terrorism and other public health emergencies.”

**Notes:**
Q1.	Terri, would you Begin by telling us what “HER-SA” hopes to achieve through the National Bioterrorism Hospital Preparedness Program.

## Education and Training

- FY 02 Guidance – Secondary Priority
- FY 03 Guidance – Optional Benchmark #5
- 89% of the jurisdictions addressed education and training directly.
- 100% described educational activities

**Notes:**
Q2. What is currently being done by “HER-SA” awardees in the area of education and training for hospital preparedness?

## Targeted Trainees

**Notes:**
Q2. Continued

## Topics Addressed

**Notes:**
Q2. Continued

## Educational Methodology

**Notes:**
Q2. Continued

## The Overriding Question

- What percentage of the Nation’s health care workforce is prepared to respond competently to a public health emergency?
- Federal Response Today
- Progress reportscan’t tell us
- State and Local Response Today
- Can’t tell us
- Providers Response
- G. Caleb Alexander et al, “Ready and Willing? Physician Sense of Preparedness for Bioterrorism”, *Health Affairs, Oct. 2003.*

**Notes:**
Q3. You’ve told us about a significant amount of work that has been done to date. What challenges remain in meeting the current educational needs of hospital staffs?

## Future Direction

- Assist awardees in transforming bioterrorism education _**from**_ a focus on content alone
- Smallpox
- Anthrax
- Radiation Illness
- 	_**toward**_ competencies
- All hospital employees should be able to describe their emergency response role and be able to demonstrate it during drills or actual emergencies.

**Notes:**
Q4. Where is the program headed?

## Existing Bioterrorism Competencies

- Public Health
- Medicine
- Nursing
- EMS
- Hospital-based employees
- Hospital administrators

**Notes:**
Q4. Continued

## Expected Benefits of Competency-Based Education

- Programmatic definition and differentiation
- Increased focus on obtaining the answers to the real question:
- What percentage of our health care workforce is prepared to respond?
- Increased relationship between training and  workplace applicability
- Training outcomes are observable and therefore measurable

**Notes:**
Q5. What benefits does “HER-SA” expect from moving in this direction at this time?

## Improved transferability and comparability of training
Educational mapping
Efficiency in resource utilization
Clearer definition of health care provider preparedness
Expensive drills will have added utilization.

- Educational mapping
- Efficiency in resource utilization
- Clearer definition of health care provider preparedness
- Expensive drills will have added utilization.

- Expected Benefits of Competency-Based Education

**Notes:**
Q5. Continued

## For More Information	

- For more information on HRSA’s National Bioterrorism Hospital Preparedness Program, go to:
- _www.hrsa.gov/bioterrorism.htm_

**Notes:**
Q6. Where can our listeners learn more about this program?