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UBCO provides rural pandemic response training

The simulation prepares health-care students to handle COVID-19 cases
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Students are receiving training on how to respond to COVID-19 cases in various community settings. (University of B.C. Okanagan)

UBC Okanagan is teaching health care students to respond to COVID-19 through a simulation guide at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH).

The university said research from its Southern Medical Program has highlighted a new pandemic simulation guide as an important resource for helping the provincial health care system stay up to date.

When COVID-19 cases started appearing in the province, UBCO’s Dr. Jared Baylis and Interior Health (IH) worked together to come up with the new simulation guide to help hospitals and communities safely deal with the pandemic, especially in rural communities.

“The stakes were high as health care teams looked to simulation to help effectively manage COVID-19 patients and ensure the safety of front-line staff,” Baylis said.

Baylis and IH developed a standardized set of protocols that could be delivered safely, regardless of the environment.

The university said the simulation guide gives educators the tools and resources to facilitate training that will allow students and other participants to feel safe and learn how to confidently handle COVID-19 cases no matter if they are in a rural setting or not.

“We want to ensure exercises are productive, respect physical distance measures, and optimize the use of personal protective equipment,” Baylis added.

“Our hope is to build capacity for COVID-19 training across BC, particularly within rural areas that lack access to dedicated simulation resources.”

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Twila Amato
Video journalist, Black Press Okanagan
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Twila Amato

About the Author: Twila Amato

Twila was a radio reporter based in northern Vancouver Island. She won the Jack Webster Student Journalism Award while at BCIT and received a degree in ancient and modern Greek history from McGill University.
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