The USUHS Online Preparedness Education Program is designed to provide health-care professionals with current health and medical information about topics related to weapons of mass destruction. The program, which is part of a USUHS WMD Collaborative Medical Readiness Training Initiative, encompasses three tiers of engagement.

The first, known as the field guide, contains the basic information needed to manage casualties generated by a specific agent or threat. The second is a comprehensive peer-reviewed reference section that can be used to obtain detailed information about a particular subject. Both are available without registration.

The third tier—which does require registration—is a scenario-based, interactive program that follows a hypothetical health-care provider as he or she responds to a mass casualty incident. Embedded within the storyline are a series of lessons, discussions, and information sessions that address the public health, medical, and emergency management issues related to a particular topic. Login is required each time a user wishes to participate in the program. Continuing education credits will be provided when the related material is successfully completed.

Statement of Need

The need for the USUHS Online Preparedness Education Program was established through a series of sub-committee hearings and discussions between congressional leaders, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Defense. Since the events of September 11, 2001, funding for a full range of CBRNE/WMD medical response training programs was assessed as sporadic. Congress also agreed that the information that various governmental, educational, and private organizations have released has generally been neither coordinated nor validated for both military and civilian response.

In 2004, a collaborative CBRNE/WMD training initiative, spearheaded by the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences through the Office of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, was ultimately approved, funded, and mandated by Congress. Congressional records on the line item USUHS CBRNE/WMD Readiness Training Initiative read as follows:

Program Description: USUHS CBRNE/WMD Collaborative Medical Readiness Training Initiative. This initiative would allow USUHS to cost-effectively provide military-unique, quality-assured, web-based training and consultative expertise via the Internet for medical response CBRNE/WMD incidents; avoid duplication of effort through collaborative efforts; and ensure medical readiness for the uniformed and civilian emergency responder and health-care provider communities across the nation.