University students from across the state participated in a disaster preparedness program on Friday. The event required participants to work through a mock disease outbreak.
This exercise dealt specifically with a flu pandemic, but organizers said the lessons learned here could be extrapolated to other disaster situations.
"The students are in groups and they represent different cities in Arizona and the response teams," explained Janet Foote, an assistant professor with the University of Arizona. "Right now, they’re prioritizing who gets a vaccine and who doesn’t."
Foote said the program brings students from a wide range of disciplines together, from law and social work to nursing and internal medicine.
"In teaching, we’re so concerned about educating our own discipline that we don't always think about all teamwork that’s necessary once you get into a career," she said.
Naturopathic medical student Lana Butner said she can relate with this sentiment.
"As a medical student, you get caught up in classes and grades and just passing and getting through," Butner said. "And so when you see a hypothetical scenario like this, it kind of reminds you why you're there."
This is the eighth year the state’s universities have come together for the event. But with the recent attention to high-profile diseases such as Ebola and Enterovirus, instructors said this drill is especially relevant.
