“Right! Let’s don up…." says one of the dozen students gathered on campus. Packages with latex gloves and face masks are readily opened.
The students all stand in a classroom rendered into a makeshift hospital setting. Standing between hospital beds with dummy patients, they try on an arsenal of protective gear, in addition to their medical scrubs.
“The concern has been from Dallas…neck coverage," says Jennifer Johnson, the Clinical Lab Coordinator at Baldwin Wallace. "If you look at the isolation gown, the neck is exposed. We’re using a mask. Head covers. And I’ve ordered the latest technology from our supplier.”
The nurses are eight weeks into their training. This part is a late addition. A response to the first Ebola cases that have now touched Cleveland with the due to the visit of a Dallas nurse later diagnosed with the disease.
“It’s nurses who are contracting this," says James Fell,the Director of the Bachelor of Science Nursing Program. "We had the case in Spain, and two cases here in the United States, so it shows it’s nurses -- among all healthcare professionals --who are on the front lines, it’s nurses who are with the patient 24-7. And they’re most at risk.”
Several of those we spoke with in Baldwin Wallace’s nursing program remain confident Ebola will be controlled. Administrators say after this week’s case with Cleveland ties was reported, they consulted with the CDC Wednesday night to make sure they had the most up to date protocols and procedures.