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The Nebraska Ebola Method

The Nebraska Ebola Method

Education Highlight – College of Public Health faculty and staff spearheaded the launch of free Ebola online courses, in association with Apple, available on both iTunes and Moodle. One course is directed at clinicians, while the other course is for lay audiences and available in both English and Spanish.  Developed in collaboration with University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) faculty and its primary clinical partner, Nebraska Medicine, “The Nebraska Ebola Method for Clinicians” and “The Nebraska Ebola Method for General Public” provide online instruction and information on Ebola and caring for an Ebola patient through videos and printable documents.

After receiving many phone calls and emails from health care organizations across the nation seeking guidance from the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit on processes and procedures that allowed them to successfully treat and release two Ebola patients, UNMC and Nebraska Medicine sought to share their experiences and expertise with the world. The team designed and developed the online courses to easily and readily share information and best practices.

“The Nebraska Ebola Method for Clinicians” provides videos, documents, and guidelines along with information used in Nebraska to care for Ebola patients. The dynamic and evolving course will be updated frequently to share up-to-date processes used to safely care for Nebraska patients. Continuing education credits are being offered, and more information is available here.

The clinician’s course is available via the iTunes U app for iPad and iPhone, through this direct link (iPad or iPhone only), or by searching in iTunes U. The Apple iTunes store app or iTunes U app must be downloaded onto your iPad or iPhone to access the course. If the course does not automatically pop up, hit the search icon and search “Nebraska Ebola” in iTunes. The course also is available through the UNMC College of Public Health Moodle for viewing on a desktop, laptop, or other mobile device.

“The Nebraska Ebola Method for General Public” course explains the disease in terms that are easy to understand and helpful to patients, families, and community members. Some topics included in the course are signs and symptoms of Ebola, how it is spread, coping with stress, and talking with children during infectious disease outbreaks. All Nebraska Ebola Method materials were developed with high standards for health literacy and accessibility. Along with the English materials, materials for Spanish-speaking individuals have been developed into an additional iTunes U course and are also available on the UNMC webpage.

The courses for the general public are available at unmc.edu/ebola, and through the iTunes University app for those with iPads or iPhones.

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