Date of Award
2003
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Programs for Higher Education
Advisor
Joan B. Murry
Committee Member
Stephen McLeod
Committee Member
Barbara Packer
Keywords
action plan, course description, course outline, criteria, evaluation, first responders, formative evaluation, implementation, learning goals, medical first responders, needs assessment, objectives, patient care, Peterson Clinic, population definition, program development, program goals, quality management, research, summative evaluation, terrorism, training needs, training program, weapons of mass destruction
Abstract
The problem was that there was no valid training program in place to provide the Peterson Clinic first responders with the training they needed to respond effectively to a weapons of mass destruction (WMD) incident involving up to 300 patients. The purpose of this applied dissertation was to develop a WMD First-Responders Training Program for the Peterson Clinic with plans for implementation and evaluation.
A development methodology with a plan to implement and a plan to evaluate was used to complete this project. As a preliminary procedure, the needs assessment methodology was used to determine the training needs of the medical first responders. Formative and summative committee members provided advice to the project director concerning products and procedures of the training program.
The following procedures were used to develop the WMD-training program: (a) conduct a needs assessment, (b) define clearly the population, (c) identify program goals, (d) identify program objectives, (e) develop a course outline, (f) develop a plan for implementation, and (g) develop a plan for evaluation.
A result of this research was the development of a WMD First-Responders Training Program. Other results included 8 main supporting themes and the identification of the criteria needed to develop a training program. The development of a training needs assessment, learning goals and objectives, and a course description resulted from this research. A plan for implementation, the identification of the procedures needed for evaluation, and an action plan for evaluation were also results of this study.