Buies Creek, N.C.-The attacks of Sept. 11 seem to have impressed upon everyone the idea that terrorists can strike within the United States; bioterrorism is also now a reality. Because of this looming threat, disaster preparedness was the focus of a Campbell University School of Pharmacy continuing education course conducted recently by the North Carolina Public Health Preparedness and Response Office. Campbell is the only university in North Carolina participating in this state-run pilot program to recruit pharmacists, technicians, pharmacy students and other volunteers to fill vital disaster preparedness roles.”We’ve worked with Campbell in the past on the North Carolina Emergency Task Force,” said Dr.Amanda Fuller, coordinating pharmacist for the North Carolina Public Health Preparedness and Response Office. “We have some working relationship with all of the North Carolina schools, but our most well-established association is with Campbell.”According to Dr. Mark Moore, associate dean for Student Affairs and Admissions for the Campbell School of Pharmacy, in case of a natural or man-made disaster, Campbell pharmacy students and professionals could aid with triage, dispensing medications, medical evacuation, transport and assistance.”We’re trying to create a repository of professionals with the skill and knowledge to respond to all of these demands,” he said.The state especially needs pharmacists in the event of a bio-terrorism attack, Fuller added. “We need at least 6,000 volunteers per every three to four counties to operate points of dispensing (POD) medications for people with existing conditions and those who have been made sick by an attack,” she said. “We would like for many of these to be pharmacists.”There are 57 CHEMPACKs in North Carolina, a cache of nerve agent antidotes issued by the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), and the SNS has also created a Cities Readiness Initiative which helps major cities and their metropolitan areas prepare for a large scale bioterrorist event. However, there is still a great need for medically informed volunteers, Fuller said. Charlotte alone has 101,545 people without vehicles; 70,000 disabled adults and over 84,000 that speak poor English.”Counties must have a plan for dealing with these special situations,” Fuller said. “That’s why pharmacy students are such a great source of help. It’s really not the manpower we are worried about, it’s the medically knowledgeable manpower we also need.”Fuller recommended that recruiters get students, pharmacists and certified pharmacist technicians involved from the beginning. “If you can get them on the front end, you usually end up with a lifetime of volunteerism,” she said.  The Campbell University School of Pharmacy was established in 1986 as the first new school of pharmacy to open in the United States in 35 years. In 1990, the charter class distinguished itself with a 100 percent passage rate on state and national board examinations. The School is a member of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. Additional courses are taught at the School of Pharmacy Department of Clinical Research located on Campbell University’s RTP campus.Photo Copy: Dr. Amanda Fuller, coordinating pharmacist for the North Carolina Public Health Preparedness and Response Office
Campbell participates in pilot program for disaster preparedness