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It might be a highly contagious virus, a virulent flu or a drug-resistant superbug.
But medical experts say a pandemic disease is sure to strike Greenville one day.
So local health officials are conducting a drill this week so that when it happens, the medical community won’t be caught off guard. And this time, second-year medical students at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine-Greenville will be involved.
“There are a host of deadly viruses that could potentially threaten the world’s population and they could start anywhere in the world — or here in Greenville,” said Dr. Bill Kelly, medical director for infectious diseases at Greenville Health System and a member of the medical school faculty.
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The drill, which officials say may be the most comprehensive pandemic exercise at a U.S. medical school, runs from Aug. 5-8 at Greenville Memorial’s Health Sciences Education Building. It’s part of a pathology course on viral infectious disease and will include faculty and staff from Greenville Health System, the state Department of Health and Environmental Control, the Red Cross and other groups.
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“There is no way to determine if a variant strain of influenza or another disease altogether will cause the next pandemic,” Kelly said. “So introducing medical students to the complexities of pandemic response is critical.”
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In the exercise, groups of six to eight will tackle issues such as a lack of resources at a time when they are desperately needed, said Dr. Thomas B. Pace, an orthopedic surgeon at GHS and clinical faculty member at the medical school.
http://www.greenvilleonline.com/article/20130804/NEWS/308040017/Students-join-pandemic-drill?nclick_check=1
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