American Journal of Disaster Medicine
Spring 2015, Volume 10, Number 2
http://pnpcsw.pnpco.com/cadmus/testvol.asp?year=2015&journal=ajdm
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Article
Assessment of the accuracy of the Medical Response to Major Incidents (MRMI) course for interactive training of the response to major incidents and disasters
Kristina Lennquist Montán, RN; Per Örtenwall, MD, PhD; Sten Lennquist, MD, PhD
Spring 2015; pages 93-107
Abstract
Background and aims:
The benefit of simulation models for interactive training of the response to major incidents and disasters has been increasingly recognized during recent years and a variety of such models have been reported. However, reviews of this literature show that the majority of these reports have been characterized by significant limitations regarding validation of the accuracy of the training related to given objectives. In this study, precourse and postcourse self-assessment surveys related to the specific training objectives, as an established method for curriculum validation, were used to validate the accuracy of a course in Medical Response to Major Incidents (MRMI) developed and organized by an international group of experts under the auspices of the European Society for Trauma and Emergency Surgery.
Methods:
The studied course was an interactive course, where all trainees acted in their normal roles during two full-day simulation exercises with real time and with simultaneous training of the whole chain of response: scene, transport, the different functions in the hospital, communication, coordination, and command. The key component of the system was a bank of magnetized casualty cards, giving all information normally available as a base for decisions on triage and primary management. All treatments were indicated with attachments on the cards and consumed time and resources as in reality. The trainees’ performance was recorded according to prepared protocols and a measurable result of the response could be registered. This study was based on five MRMI courses in four different countries with altogether 235 participants from 23 different countries. In addition to conventional course evaluations and recording of the performance during the 2 exercise days, the trainees’ perceived competencies related to the specific objectives of the training for different categories of staff were registered on a floating scale 1-10 in self-assessment protocols immediately before and after the course. The results were compared as an indicator of to which extent the training fulfilled the given objectives. These objectives were set by an experienced international faculty and based on experiences from recent major incident and disasters.
Results:
Comparison of precourse and postcourse self-assessments of the trainees’ perceived knowledge and skills related to the given objectives for the training showed a significant increase in all the registered parameters for all categories of participating staff. The average increase was for prehospital staff 74 percent (p < 0.001), hospital staff 65 percent (p < 0.001), and staff in coordinating/administrative functions 81 percent (p < 0.001).
Conclusions:
The significant differences in the trainees’ self-assessment of perceived competencies between the precourse and postcourse surveys indicated that the methodology in the studied course model accurately responded to the specific objectives for the different categories of staff. DOI:10.5055/ajdm.2015.0194
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Article
Modernizing stockpiles of medical countermeasures against smallpox: Benefits, risks, and knowledge gaps
Martin B. Oleksiewicz, DVM, PhD; Nina R. Steenhard, DVM, PhD; John-Erik Stig Hansen, MD, DMSc
Spring 2015; pages 109-120
Abstract
Objective: New smallpox medical countermeasures are entering the marketplace, offering the opportunity to modernize existing stockpiles. However, new smallpox countermeasures are developed under the animal rule, meaning that human efficacy data are lacking, and human safety data may be limited. Also, stockpile modernization would require prioritization of increasingly limited public funds. Approaches to address these issues are needed. Methods: Smallpox vaccine data were gathered by literature search. The financial value of vaccination in the face of an outbreak was evaluated using a threat-based cost/benefit analysis model, involving i) estimation of the efficacy of new smallpox vaccines based on available clinical data on virus-neutralizing seroconversion in vaccinees, ii) estimation of the likelihood for a smallpox outbreak in Denmark, and iii) estimation of the expected life-saving effects of postevent vaccination. Results: The authors estimated that i) the likelihood of a smallpox outbreak in Denmark is very low (one event in 200,000 years), ii) the expected efficacy of currently available and new vaccines is 95 and 75 percent, respectively, iii) the expected frequency of serious side effects from vaccination is between 100 and 10,000 fold lower for new than for existing vaccines, depending on modes of action. Conclusions: Despite the very low likelihood for a smallpox outbreak, the potentially large consequences combined with the protective effect of vaccination make maintenance of the smallpox vaccine stockpile justified and valuable. For vaccination in the face of a smallpox outbreak, a high efficacy rather than a lowered rate of adverse effects would maximize the number of lives saved.
DOI:10.5055/ajdm.2015.0195
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Article
The Ebola Spatial Care Path(TM): Accelerating point-of-care diagnosis, decision making, and community resilience in outbreaks
Gerald J. Kost, MD, PhD, MS, FACB; William J. Ferguson, MS; Jackie Hoe; Anh-Thu Truong; Arirat Banpavichit, MS, MBA; Surin Kongpila, MS
Spring 2015; pages 121-143
Abstract
Objectives:
To present a vision where point-of-care testing (POCT) accelerates an Ebola Spatial Care Path™ (SCP) and future molecular diagnostics enable facilitated-access self-testing (FAST POC); to design an alternate care facility (ACF) for the SCP; to innovate an Ebola diagnostic center (DC); and to propel rapid POCT to the frontline to create resilience that stops future outbreaks. Design:
PubMed, literature, and web searches. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Medicine Without Frontiers, and World Health Organization (WHO) document analyses. Investigations in China, the Philippines, Thailand, and the United States. Review of SE Asia, US, and West Africa isolation-treatment centers. Innovation of a SCP, ACF, and DC suitable for American and other communities.
Outcomes:
The authors designed an ACF and DC to integrate SCP principles for urgent Ebola care. FDA emergency use authorizations for Ebola molecular diagnostics were discovered, but no portable, handheld, or self-contained molecular POC instruments are yet available, although feasible. The WHO initiated design criteria and an acceptance protocol for testing. Financial investment in POCT will downsize Ebola outbreaks.
Conclusions:
POCT is facilitating global health. Now, global health problems are elevating POCT to new levels of importance for accelerating diagnosis and evidence-based decision making during disease outbreaks. Authorities concur that rapid diagnosis has potential to stop disease spread. With embedded POCT, strategic SCPs planned by communities fulfill CDC recommendations. POC devices should consolidate multiplex test clusters supporting patients with Ebola in isolation. The ultimate future solution is FAST POC. New technologies offer minimally significant risks. Diagnostic centers in ACFs and transportable formats also will optimize Ebola SCPs. Key words: alternate care facility, biosafety cabinet, diagnostic center, empowerment, facilitated-access self-testing, hemorrhagic fever, isolation, near-patient testing, needs assessment, newdemic, outbreak, personal protective equipment, persons under investigation, point-of-care culture, POC technologies, POC testing, return on investment, small-world network, treatment center DOI:10.5055/ajdm.2015.0196
