1

http://www.hawaii.edu/news/article.php?aId=3422

 

Pacific EMPRINTS-NDLS-Pacific Regional Center brings training to Majuro 

University of Hawai’i at Mānoa 
 
Contact: Ann M Sakaguchi, (808) 956-8454 
Director Anna Daddario, (808) 956-0895 
Program and Training Coordinator 
Posted: Feb. 25, 2010 

 

Majuro health professionals treat a Human Patient Simulator with nerve agent exposure. 

A team of five University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa National Disaster Life Support 
(NDLS) certified instructors that are part of the Pacific EMPRINTS program flew to 
the Marshall Islands during January 2010 to conduct courses in Basic Disaster Life 
Support (BDLS) and Advanced Disaster Life Support (ADLS). Over a three-day 
period, the team trained forty-five (45) health professionals, emergency responders 
and other key health personnel selected by the Majuro Ministry of Health.  

“These trainings will help health professionals better prepare and respond to natural, 
technological, terrorist and other public health emergencies such as pandemic 
influenzas and other infectious diseases,” said Ann Sakaguchi, Pacific EMPRINTS 
and National Disaster Life Support (NDLS)-Pacific Regional Center Director. 

The BDLS didactic course lays the foundation for emergency management responders 
and health care professionals to address disaster readiness in a uniform, coordinated 
approach to mass casualty management and other public health emergencies. 

The ADLS is an advanced practicum course that allows students to demonstrate 
competencies in casualty decontamination, specific disaster skills and mass casualty 
incident information systems/technology applications. The course incorporates four 
interactive sessions in which participants treat simulated patients in various disaster 
drills and situations applying the knowledge learned in BDLS. 

These two courses, which incorporate an all hazards approach, have been vetted by 
subject matter experts and nationally recognized health professionals from across the 

 

2

United States. Those successfully completing the training receive continuing medical 
education credits from the American Medical Association. 

The team consisted of NDLS-certified instructors: Dr. William Haning, Jr. (Director 
of Graduate Affairs at the John A. Burns School of Medicine), Dr. Elizabeth Char 
(Director of City and County of Honolulu Emergency Medical Services), Christopher 
Crabtree, MPA (Paramedic and Faculty Member at Kapi olani Community College’s 
Emergency Medical Services); Anna Daddario, MSW (Social Worker and Program 
and Training Coordinator at Pacific EMPRINTS) and Ann Sakaguchi, M.P.H., 
PhD. (Faculty, College of Social Sciences, UH Mānoa and Director of Pacific 
EMPRINTS and NDLS Pacific Regional Center.)   

Pacific EMPRINTS (Emergency Management Preparedness and Response 
Information Network and Training Services) is a consortium of fourteen 
organizations, which was established in late 2005 with funding from the U.S. 
Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources Services 
Administration.  Today, it has grown to a premier disaster preparedness and 
management training program in the Pacific region.  In addition, since 2008 Pacific 
EMPRINTS has been designated as the National Disaster Life Support (NDLS) 
Regional Center under the American Medical Association, one of thirty-five (35) such 
centers in the U.S, and the only center in the Pacific region, focusing its trainings 
efforts within the State of Hawai i and the surrounding Pacific region.  

In addition to its NDLS training, Pacific EMPRINTS offers 60+ online and podcast 
courses, 11 problem-based learning and 16 GIS/GPS courses, 50+ informational 
lectures, mini-simulation and live training exercises and annual conferences to address 
preparing for and responding to natural disasters and technological hazards. 
Enrollments in its courses are from the Pacific region, Hawai i as well as all of the 
other forty-nine(49) states. More information about Pacific EMPRINTS and the 
training opportunities it offers can be found at www.emprints.hawaii.edu.  Pacific 
EMPRINTS is currently funded by the Hawai i State Civil Defense. 

For more information, visit: http://www.emprints.hawaii.edu