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“Our efforts will be aimed at improving and supporting infection prevention and control efforts in Alabama’s health and public health systems,” said Lisa McCormick, associate professor and associate dean for public health practice. at the UAB School of Public Health and director of the ARC IPC. . “I am delighted to be working with a diverse team of IPC experts to help ADHD strengthen Alabama’s capacity to prevent, control and manage infectious disease outbreaks.
IPC experts play an essential role during the pandemic through the surveillance, detection, response and prevention of future epidemics. McCormick hopes the efforts will build the capacity of the workforce to fight COVID-19 and increase awareness of the need and importance of professionals in the field.
The pandemic has had immense impacts on the economy, health and social well-being of Alabamians. As of June, there had been more than 548,000 cases of COVID-19 and 11,250 deaths from the virus in Alabama. Vaccination rates in the state are lagging as new, increasingly transmissible variants, such as the Delta variant, emerge.
In addition, Alabama continues to see an increase in hepatitis A and RSV cases during the summer months when concerns about vector and foodborne diseases increase.
“As a nation and state, we have been truly caught off guard by SARS-CoV-2 even though scientists have warned that coronaviruses have the potential to create a global pandemic,†said Suzanne Judd, professor, co-director of the CRA. IPC and director of the Lister Hill Center for Health Policy at the UAB School of Public Health. “Working with ADHD will help us be prepared when a new virus or bacteria threatens the health of Alabamians. We will be better prepared to communicate risks to the public to help prevent future pandemics. “
The center will provide training and technical assistance to IPC staff in local, district and state health services, infection control officials and nurses in inpatient and outpatient and long-term care facilities. duration, hospital epidemiologists, school nurses and other infections. control practitioners.
“UAB faculty and staff involved in this center have extensive experience in infectious disease prevention and control, epidemiology and surveillance, behavioral health, public health preparedness, forecasting and modeling, as well as in the implementation and evaluation of public health programs including strengthening the current public health and healthcare workforce, â€said McCormick.
Researchers at the ARC IPC include Dr Paul Erwin, Dr Rachael Lee, Dr Marjorie White, Dr Sarah Nafziger, Dr James Crosby, Bertha Hidalgo, Greg Pavela, Tamika Smith, Judd and McCormick.
The ARC IPC is currently launching its efforts. Visit the website to request training or technical assistance, access infection prevention resources, view upcoming training opportunities, or learn more about the center. For more information, questions or to subscribe to the ARC IPC newsletter, send an email to [email protected].
This story originally appeared on the UAB News website.
(Courtesy of the Alabama NewsCenter)
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