Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #116327

Charles DiMaggio, PhD, MPH, PA-C¹, Sharon Balter, MD, MFA², Vasudha Reddy, MPH², Heather Hanson, MPH², Eric Gebbie, MA, MIA³, Michael McCollum, BA⁴, Julie Piotrowski, BSJ⁴, Kristine Gebbie, DrPH, RN⁵, and Stephen S. Morse, PhD⁴. (1) National Center for Disaster Preparedness, Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, 722 W. 168th Street, 10th Floor, New York, NY 10032, (2) Communicable Disease Program, New York City Department of Health, 125 Worth St, Box 22v, New York, NY 10013, (3) Center for Public Health Preparedness, SUNY-Albany School of Public Health, One University Place, Rensselaer, NY 12144, (4) Center for Public Health Preparedness, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, 722 West 168th St., New York, NY 10032, 212 342 0555, mcm2117@columbia.edu, (5) School of Nursing, Columbia University, Center for Health Policy, 630 West 168 Street, GB 250, New York City, NY 10032

Infectious disease outbreaks are resource intensive emergencies for health departments, which often experience a disruption of normal work routines during such events and do not want to overextend personnel to fill investigation teams. Recruiting talented graduate health professions students to augment health departments' response efforts can provide timely, effective surge capacity. The Center's model strengthens students' interest in public health practice by providing hands-on training and valuable frontline field experience. Additionally, in a larger disaster or other public health emergency, a competent, proficient student labor pool is prepared to assist. The Center for Public Health Preparedness at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health has developed, implemented and is expanding its student epidemiology corps designed to provide surge capacity to the NYC DOHMH. The Center's model includes functional epidemiological training of students including case interviewing, investigation protocols, disease surveillance and related public health preparedness. Twelve Mailman students participated in the Summer 2004 pilot program and several aided the NYC DOHMH during foodborne disease outbreaks. The NYC DOHMH received 30 students in the program's Fall 2004 cohort, and the Spring 2005 group is undergoing training. Surveys of the students polled at the conclusion of each activation revealed that the frontline field experience was extremely useful in students' practice of disease investigation.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to

• Discuss the advantages of using graduate health professions students to augment the public health workforce during a public health emergency;
• Discuss relevant issues in the recruitment, retention and professional development of graduate health professions students in a student epidemiologic surge capacity program;
• Discuss the best practices associated with the development and implementation of a student epidemiologic surge capacity program in partnership with a graduate public health school or local department of health.

Keywords: Students, Epidemiology

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation