Kent State’s College of Public Health to Hold Mock Disease Outbreak Investigation, July 12

WHAT:
Kent State University’s College of Public Health will hold an event Thursday, July 12, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. for high school students enrolled in the university’s Upward Bound program as a way to show them what public health is all about. The event is a mock disease outbreak investigation. Members of the media are welcome to attend and cover it.

This event is designed to be a real-world outbreak investigation and promises to be a learning experience for those involved. Approximately 12 Kent State undergraduate and graduate public health students will have “contracted” salmonella from one of the food facilities on or near campus. The Upward Bound students will be acting as 1) the epidemiologists, who will interview the sick students and determine a common exposure; 2) the health inspectors, who will be conducting an inspection of the food facility on campus; 3) a diagnostic lab unit, who will be in the lab working to determine what the infectious agent is; and 4) the health commissioners, who will be located at the Portage County Emergency Command vehicle coordinating the investigation and fielding questions from the media.
 
Kent State is coordinating this activity and has secured participation from the Portage County Health Department and Emergency Management Agency.

WHEN:
Thursday, July 12
Timeline of activities:

8:30-9 a.m.
Facilitators/controllers arrive to staging area (Beal Hall)
Review the MSEL (Master Sequence of Events List) and receive radios (John Mason)

9-9:15 a.m.
Incident briefing/update of scenario (John Mason and Annette Petranic)
Staging through VRC to receive assignments and supplies (led by VRC volunteer)

9:15-11:45 a.m.
Break out into their groups and re-assemble to their assigned work location
Health Commissioner/Command: facilitated by John Mason (Command Post)
Epidemiological Unit: Facilitated by Rose Ferraro (Beal Hall)
Health Inspector/ Registered Sanitarian Unit: Facilitated by Beth Ahrens (Food Service Establishment on campus)
Diagnostic/Lab Unit: Facilitated by Angela DeJulius and James Readfern (Health Center Lab)
 
11:45 a.m.-12 p.m.
Demobilize (report back to staging area Beal Hall)
Sign out and turn in all supplies/radios

WHERE:
Beal Hall, Studio A
Kent State University
1475 Eastway Drive
Kent, Ohio 44242

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Eric Mansfield, emansfie@kent.edu, 330-672-2797
Emily Vincent, evincen2@kent.edu, 330-672-8595

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