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Health Simulator for Preparedness Training

The University of Illinois at Chicago has sent a team which has created a video game to distribute and prepare public health workers and emergency responders for emergency situations like bio-terrorism, pandemic flu, smallpox, and other disasters. This video game is intended to allow people to learn to prepare through simulation, as well as record their responses.

The game tracks how the public health workers respond to various situations and how quickly patients are being evaluated and treated. Kevin Harvey, manager of the City Readiness Training Group, that developed the game says, `We`ve strived to make the game interface easy and accessible for people who may not be computer savvy, yet we want it to be immersive.`

Lars Ullberg, executive producer of the project at UIC`s Center for the Advancement of Distance Education and an Emmy Award-winning writer, developer, and producer says, `In light of the disastrous response to Hurricane Katrina, it is clear that preparedness training needs to go a lot further. Simulations are the only efficient and cost-effective way to bridge the gap between theory and practice and prepare our emergency workers for both the expected and unexpected.`