Stories to Tell: CIDRAP News Team Shares Unique Expertise in the Classroom
With pride and sadness, in December we said goodbye to our third group of undergraduate students to complete the “Battling the Bugs: Anthrax, Ebola, and Everyday Life” Honors Seminar. Co-hosted by the Health Emergency Response Office and Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), the course includes a review of high-visibility outbreaks from the past, fictitious scenarios and real incidents in the present, and routine public health efforts behind the scenes rarely seen by the general public. As in past years, the diversity of student backgrounds, interests, skills, and future goals made the seminar a fun experience for all involved. Many of our students have subsequently joined the U of M Medical Reserve Corps and will be valuable partners in our response planning efforts for the university community.
To study the “everyday life” component of the seminar, students are asked to share and review an infectious disease–related news article each week in class. Every year, on the first day, a handful of concerned students ask, “Where can I find an article every week?” My answer is always the same: “Everywhere.” The sheer number of issues arising every day, and the multitude of sources available for information — some reputable, some extremely questionable — present some of the greatest challenges in studying emerging infectious diseases. No source is off limits for the class assignments with the exception of one: CIDRAP.
CIDRAP is home to an inspiring group of people in today’s world of posts and tweets — experienced and eloquent journalists who truly understand science, biology, and health. A sampling of their recent stories highlights the breadth and depth of their infectious disease coverage:
- WHO expert: Ebola outbreak to continue at least 6 more months
- Flu activity ramps up across US as 2 more kids’ deaths noted
- Nearly a fourth of outpatient antibiotics unneeded, study finds
- Program aims to 'studentsource' antibiotic discovery
- Marburg-carrying bats found in West Africa for first time
- Romaine E coli probe leads to Santa Barbara County farm
- CDC: Worrisome longhorned tick spreading rapidly in US
- Polio experts address fears over disease resurgence
- Report: Measles spike triggered by vaccination gaps
- Malaria spike in Ebola zone prompts mass treatment efforts
- Study affirms fractional dosing with yellow fever vaccine
- AFM count tops 250 as CDC struggles to find cause
As one would imagine, the daily focus on research and analysis required to report for CIDRAP News produces some of the most informed people on the planet when it comes to emerging infectious disease issues. Inviting them into the classroom just made sense. What started out as a pilot project last year is now a key component of the educational experience. CIDRAP journalists listen to news stories presented by students, engage in discussions, and share one or more of their own “hot off the press” stories for review and discussion. Not only do students learn important lessons about infectious disease issues, but they become better consumers of information provided from a wide variety of sources. Many students report this as one of the highlights of the seminar.
Beyond their contribution to our teaching mission, CIDRAP News colleagues support our university’s response planning efforts, as well. In addition to daily news feeds and resources to keep us abreast of emerging issues, our co-location with CIDRAP allows for an awesome partnership. Having a world-renowned information source located in the office next door is truly a luxury when CDC announces a new policy for outbreak response in the U.S., or a disease emergency is reported in a distant country serving as home to our students and faculty. As we teach in “Battling the Bugs,” the first step in any infectious disease incident is gathering information as quickly as possible while ensuring it is accurate. Oftentimes, speed and accuracy are competing interests. We are so fortunate to work with colleagues who thread that needle so expertly every day.