What Would YOU do?

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What Would YOU do?
Best Practices for Safe Healthy Study Abroad
Programs
Lyman Briggs College Assistant Professor Jerry
Urquhart, properly harnessed and helmeted in
Nicaragua
April 1, 2009
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Todays Topics

• Overview of health safety resources available
  to program leaders
• Review of summer 2008 emergencies
• Introduction of experts

India
Todays materials can be found at
http//studyabroad.msu.edu/people/faculty.htmlUn
der Sponsored Events, go to Crisis Management
Workshop
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Human Resources

• Amy Fekete
• cell phones
• tech support
• Julie Friend
• judicial records
• liability concerns
• emergency preparedness and response
• Jim Schneider
• programs in developing countries

Plus there are other OSA Staff members with
regional expertise http//studyabroad.msu.edu/cont
act/staff.html
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OSA Homepage
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Leader Resources
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Student Resources
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Web Resources

• OSA Faculty Web page
• EPR schedule
• Cell phone information
• Travel Warning policies
• Country Information Sheets
• Contact Information guidelines
• Risk and Security Assessment Committee
• HTML handbook

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Help US Help YOU

• Provide Good Contact Information
• Cell, residential phone, AND fax numbers

May 16-30 London Generator Hostel London Compton
Place (off 37 Tavistock Place) London WC1H 9SE,
UK Phone [phone]
May 20-27 Tokyo Hotel Asia Center of
Japan 8-10-32 Akasaka Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-0052
JAPAN Phone [phone] Fax
011-81-334-02-0738
May 11-June 23 Dhaka ACI Baobab Center Villa
509, Sicap Baobab BP 5270 Dakar Fann
SENEGAL Tel [phone] Fax 011 221
824.07.41 Email kgiuliano_at_acibaobab.org
Please record the phone numbers as if you were
dialing from the States, and include the 011
international dialing code
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24/7 International Emergency Assistance Line
Other Resources

• To report an emergency or receive immediate
  assistance call DPPSs 24/7 line. They will take
  your information and contact the most appropriate
  MSU official to address your concerns. This
  person will call you back.

Important If you dont hear back from us in
within 10-15 minutes call DPPS again! We may
be having trouble reaching you!
517-353-3784
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General Preparedness

• Students required to attend pre-departure
  orientation
• Leaders required to attend emergency training
• Students/leaders registered with U.S. Department
  of State
• Strongly recommend on-site orientation
  emphasizing safety
• OSA staff on-call 24/7

London, England
MSU has three levels of crisis management,
depending on the severity of the incident
Chengdu, China
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Priorities in a Crisis
Italy

• Account for all students, staff and faculty
  on-site
• Respond to concerned callers
• Provide MSU President/Provost with regular updates

• Assess for continued program presence
• Communicate assessment
• Inform the media

Kenya
Scotland
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Health Preparedness

• The HTH policy covers treatment, evacuation and
  repatriation, plus many other benefits
• For HTH to coordinate direct payment with the
  local hospital, they must be notified as soon as
  possible

Kenya
Special note Program leaders and Assistants now
have the same HTH coverage as the students!
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Summer 2008 89

• 41 medical incidents
• 1 very serious
• 2 potentially life-threatening
• 25 safety or security incidents
• Series of bomb blasts in India and Turkey
• 2 bulldozer attacks in Israel
• Students robbed at gunpoint in Ghana Costa Rica
• Student evacuated out of Georgia
• Female student goes MIA in England

Morocco
Plus 7 behavioral incidents, and 15 others
categorized as logistical administrative, or
legal.
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When Thing Go Right

• Students peers report dangerous behavior to
  leader
• Leader investigates and contacts OSA to report
  findings.
• Mental health assessment arranged by HTH. In
  time, student is accompanied back to U.S. by
  nurse.
• Program at Detroit airport when news breaks that
  a city on their itinerary experienced significant
  terrorist attack
• Leader phones OSA. OSA contacts State Department
  for information and assessment, leader alters
  itinerary on arrival, and OSA sends regular
  e-mails to students emergency contacts regarding
  safety.
• Student diagnosed and treated for malaria
  mid-week, but was not getting better by Saturday
• Leader phones emergency line. HTH transfers
  student to Tropical Disease Hospital in London
  the next day.

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When Things Go Wrong

• Group flight canceled en-route - stuck
  overnight at LAX
• OSA can locate and pay for accommodations.
• PLEASE CALL ASAP
• Student briefly hospitalized, treated, but
  condition doesnt improve. Pays out of pocket for
  care and eventually told she needs tests
  unavailable in country. Mom calls OSA on a
  Saturday to arrange for an immediate
  evacuation.
• If a student is hospitalized and MSU/HTH is not
  notified, student will be required to pay. If
  notified earlier, might not have resulted in
  student having to leave country permanently.
• PLEASE CALL ASAP
• Student dies
• MSU/OSA finds out from forwarded e-mails and the
  press.
• PLEASE CALL ASAP

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Discipline

• Egregious violations allow for immediate
  dismissal. Other violations require more due
  process
• 1st Oral Warning (and e-mail OSA)
• 2nd Written Warning
• 3rd Dismissal
• When you give an oral warning be specific
• Identify the unacceptable behavior
• Tell student to stop such behavior
• Offer consequences for disobedience
• Inform OSA

Egypt
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Parents

• Do not make direct, initial contact with family
  members without a students permission
• Where possible the student should communicate
  with their parents about a critical incident
• Do not presume that the students parents are the
  listed emergency contact
• Students provide OSA with emergency contact
  information at time of application

Argentina
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Exception

• OSA may choose, in consultation with the program
  leaders or on-site representative, to inform
  emergency contacts about a potential emergency
  abroad without the students express permission,
  such as

• The student is unable to speak for themselves
• The student has been missing for more than 24
  hours
• The student is perceived to be a danger to
  themselves or others
• When a significant health, safety or security
  incident affecting the entire program as occurred
  abroad, to provide information or updates

Ireland
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Campus Experts
Joining Us Today Are

• Cindy Chalou Acting Director, Office of Study
  Abroad
• Julie Friend Safety Security, Study Abroad
• David Novicki Professor Counselor, Counseling
  Cntr.
• Bonnie Seaks Physicians Assistant, Travel Clinic
• Richard T. Shafer Associate Director, Student
  Life
• Kristine Zayko Deputy General Counsel

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Talk to US
Upon Return
Amy Fekete - fekete_at_msu.edu cell phones tech
support Julie Friend- friendju_at_msu.edu judicial
records liability concerns emergency
preparedness/response Jim Schneider -
schne181_at_msu.edu programs in developing countries
We improve our services by analyzing past
problems and OSAs overall ability to mitigate
risk and respond to emergencies
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