Rapid Response Team Training (RRT)
The Rapid Response Team Training Program of Papua New Guinea (RRT) is one of 4 workforce development program that falls under the National Department of Health’s FETPNG unit. The other programs are the frontline FETP (fFETPNG), the intermediate FETP (iFETPNG) and the the advanced FETP (aFETPNG).
Rapid response teams (RRTs) are multidisciplinary teams embedded within Provincial Health Authorities that are activated in response to disease outbreaks, natural disasters and other urgent health threats.
RRT members include (for example) clinicians, epidemiologists, surveillance officers, laboratory specialists, environmental health officers and social mobilisation officers. These multidisciplinary teams may be asked to investigate a wide range of health emergencies, providing rapid community engagement response, public health messaging, and importantly the collection of data to inform public health response and impact.
RRTs are already being deployed in PNG provinces to respond to COVID-19 and they play a key role in testing, case investigation, contact tracing and community mitigation.
The aim is for RRTs in every province to be trained in the wide range of skills and knowledge required to respond to health emergencies in PNG. The training is highly interactive and focussed on practical application of concepts to health emergency scenarios, adapting solutions to specific provincial context and team building within the provincial RRTs. Topics covered by the intensive workshop include:
Roles and responsibilities within the RRT
Surveillance and verification of disease outbreak alerts
Rapid risk assessment
Communication plans
Community engagement
Infection, prevention and control
Interviewing principles
Psychological first aid
Case investigation
Contact tracing
Risk Communication
Sample collection and packaging
Data for decision making
Situation reports
After action reviews
Action plan for the RRT
RRT Initiation Training
Mid-2021, FEiA worked with the PNG National Department of Health and partners to deliver RRT initiation training in 6 Provinces. This intense 2-day training was conducted in the midst of the COVD-19 response and saw the establishment of raid response teams, clarification of roles and responsibilities and targeted technical training. The 2-day initiation training is followed by an after-training review and 5-day competency based training.
For further details, please refer to the following reports:
If you’d like to learn about RRT and develop skills for rapid response in your own context, you can join our free online RRT course by clicking below:
