Disaster Training for Medical Students

Abstract

Abstracts: 11th World Congress, Osaka, JapanOf the eight medical doctors and two nurses who participated in the fourth training course, the nurses now are taking an active part in Vietnam and Laos. The doctors have not found any opportunities to work overseas, but have started their activities in education of medical students and training of medical professionals from Disaster Medicine Operation Units to provide medical support to cope with future disasters in Japan. The results of a survey of the participants will be introduced in detail. Funding for this program for next year unfortunately is not planned. Conclusions: A training program for international emergency management and disaster relief is essential and should be continued for Japanese medical professionals. Such training will contribute not only to their domestic disaster relief, but also for international disaster relief to share Japan's experience with natural disasters. Disaster training is necessary as part of preparing personnel involved in managing untoward tragedies. In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the medical schools of Universiti Malaya and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia have been teaching and training medical students in disaster management. The need for early introduction of this content was recognized, and as part of emergency medicine posting, a specific lecture is dedicated to this purpose. Moreover, whenever the opportunity arises, medical students have been included during tabletop exercises, practical mock drills, disaster seminars, and conferences. From our experience, we conclude that exposure to disaster training at undergraduate level is very timely and beneficial. Perhaps, this should be considered as part and parcel of Emergency Medicine posting in undergraduate medical curricula.