Health Care Worker Bioterrorism Education: An E-Mail-Based Program

We implemented an e-mail-based educational program for health care providers to improve their knowledge, comfort level while providing care, and willingness to come to work in the event of a biologic attack. Over a 9-month period, 13 educational chapters covering the most likely biologic threats were sent electronically to providers at our institution. Identical questionnaires were used before and after the educational program. The number of e-mails read by the recipients correlated with improved test scores, higher comfort levels, and greater willingness to come to work. This study's results indicated that bioterrorism knowledge is poor, comfort level with patient care is low, and hesitancy about coming to work is, high., However, the study also demonstrated the potential for an e-mail-based educational program to improve knowledge and enhance both comfort level and willingness to come to work after a bioterrorist attack.