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Pope leads DoD plague treatment video

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Mindy Bloem
  • 43rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  Ever wonder what would happen if a plague epidemic suddenly broke out? Fortunately, Pope personnel do and they played a key role in educating other Department of Defense units on how to handle such a scenario. 

When Capt. Rosalind Ross-Perry, 43rd Medical Group Public Health Flight Commander, got word the Surgeon General's office was asking Air Force bases for help in making a video which would instruct people on how to respond to a pneumonic plague outbreak, she felt confident Pope members could pull it off. She had helped with a similar exercise in 2007 in which an influenza outbreak was the scenario. 

"I felt as though we were prepared and ready to do this," Captain Ross-Perry said. "It's one thing to actually write a plan and put it down on paper but to actually say, 'okay will this plan actually work?' I was pretty confident that we were ready as a result of our last exercise that encompassed Fort Bragg, North Carolina State University and five other local health departments. That exercise helped me feel prepared for this project."
A production team was hired to put this video together. 

"More than 74 Medical Training Facilities will be able to learn from this video and have easy access to the training," Paul Clark, assistant Air Force Weapons of Mass Destruction manager of programs from the Air Force Surgeon General's office, said.
"Readiness is the key to success," Captain Ross-Perry said. "Our primary reason for being here is to ensure that we are ready should something like this happen, be it overseas or here at home." 

In addition to professional actors being hired out of Raleigh, there was a base call out for volunteers to play certain roles, and the response was overwhelming, Captain Ross-Perry added. 

"It has been great," Senior Airman Corinna Kelley, 43rd Aerospace Medicine Squadron and role play volunteer, said. "I have learned a lot about the process, like how everything goes from one section to another and what each of our roles is in a plague situation. I feel more prepared, and I know a lot more now. One of the benefits is just knowing what our roles are and having a game plan in place of where we would be and what we would do in each situation." 

"This has really allowed us to point out key gaps in our plan," Captain Ross-Perry said. "Although we had a very good plan, we also have noted some very key items that were missing that we could definitely improve upon. So this has been huge as far as helping us ensure we are ready in case anything should happen."

Sandy Cannon-Brown, president of the company hired for production, was happy to be a part of this project for the same reason. 

"I think it's remarkable," she said. "I specialize in environmental health issues. This video will be great for the safety and health of all Americans who can benefit and be prepared for a bioterrorism outbreak like this." 

This exercise called upon support from many base agencies, and Captain Ross-Perry appreciates all the tolerance and assistance she received during this exercise which lasted from Jan. 13-15 and resulted in portions of the fitness center to close temporarily.