VALDOSTA — First responders and healthcare providers in the Valdosta, Georgia area will be able to learn more about isolation and quarantine at FREE Department of Homeland Security (DHS)-certified courses delivered by the Rural Domestic Preparedness Consortium (RDPC).
Recent outbreaks, the emergence of drug-resistant diseases and the potential threat of bioterrorism have pushed the need to reexamine isolation & quarantine (I&Q) preparedness. Modern conditions have left many responders, especially in rural and remote communities, without the knowledge and training they need for activating or coordinating aid for isolation and quarantine response.
This suite of Isolation and Quarantine for Rural Communities courses, three courses in all, aim to foster Whole Community involvement in the planning for incidents that require isolation and/or quarantine. Specifically, these courses provide small, rural, and remote communities with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to effectively plan for and respond to incidents that require isolation and/or quarantine of their populations in a variety of low- and high-impact situations. The course suite will be delivered in a one-day training session with the option to take a public safety track or public health and healthcare professional track. The core pre-requisite MGT 433, Isolation and Quarantine for Rural Communities, will be delivered from 8am to 12:30pm on March 23rd, 2015 at the South Georgia Medical Center, Classrooms A, B & C, 2501 N Patterson Street, Valdosta, Georgia. From there, students may chose to attend either MGT 432 Isolation & Quarantine for Rural Public Safety Personnel or PER 308 Rural Isolation and Quarantine for Public Health and Healthcare Professionals, to be held from 1:30pm to 5pm.
MGT 433 – Isolation and Quarantine for Rural Communities provides officials with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to effectively plan for and respond to events requiring isolation and/or quarantine of their populations in a variety of low and high-impact situations. This course serves as the prerequisite introduction for the discipline-specific courses below.
MGT 432 – Isolation & Quarantine for Rural Public Safety Personnel prepares public safety personnel in small, rural, and remote communities for response to isolation and/or quarantine events where public safety plays a key role. The course explores authorities, strategies, statutes and tactical issues related to these specialized situations.
PER 308 – Rural Isolation and Quarantine for Public Health and Healthcare Professionals consists of customized training modules tailored for the public health and healthcare fields. As a critical support resource in isolation and quarantine events, participants will become familiar with policies, guidance and resources to assist officials in planning and response.
Registration for each course is required – Registration deadline is March 9th at 9am.
To register, contact Director Ashley Tye, Lowndes County EMA at atye@lowndescounty.com or 229-671-2790.
All training delivered by RDPC is certified by DHS and is offered tuition-free for a broad scope of stakeholders in qualifying jurisdictions, including the traditional emergency response disciplines, and other emergency support functions as defined by the National Response Framework, as well as critical infrastructure owners and operators.
The RDPC is a U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) National Training and Education Division (NTED) partnership of academic institutions with a vision of creating an environment wherein rural communities across America will have the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to enhance the safety, security and quality of life for their citizens.
Current members of the Consortium include East Tennessee State University, Eastern Kentucky University, The University of Findlay, NorthWest Arkansas Community College, North Carolina Central University, and University of California-Davis. Each of these institutions possesses extensive and unique capabilities relating to rural emergency preparedness training.
As a strategic partner to the RDPC, The Center for Rural Development in Somerset, KY, is responsible for technology including a large network of interactive television (ITV), videoconferencing, and learning management systems necessary to manage large student populations and deliver courses to rural responders across the nation.
For more information or to request training – visit www.ruraltraining.org. The RDPC help desk is also available at info@ruraltraining.org or (877) 855-7372.
Darian Williams:Rural Domestic Preparedness Consortium
