PUTTING STUDENTS TO THE TEST Professor, students aid Wyoming Public Health with COVID-19 testing Dr. Brant Schumaker is no stranger to infectious diseases and pandemics. As an epidemiologist, veterinarian and director of WWAMI, the University of Wyomingâs medical education program, itâs what he studies for a living. So, when the COVID-19 pandemic began, Schumaker was well equipped and prepared to meet the challenge. Itâs his combined knowledge of animals and infectious diseases that allows him to have a wide understanding of COVID-19. âCOVID-19 is a zoonotic disease, which means it was started in animal populations. As a veterinarian, weâre trained from day one to look at disease on a multi-species level. We really buy into the concept of one health, which is the thought that the health of animals, humans and the environment are all interconnected,â he said. In addition to his many roles, at the beginning of the pandemic Schumaker was also an associate professor in the Department of Veterinary Science. As irony would have it, Schumaker was teaching an epidemiology class when the pandemic started. One of Schumakerâs former graduate students, who works for the Wyoming Department of Healthâs laboratory, approached him and expressed a need for people to work in the lab short term to help with the increased volume of COVID-19 testing. Ask anyone at the University of Wyoming, and theyâll tell you the institution prides itself on giving students real-world experience. While pandemics arenât ideal, they do happen, and Schumakerâs epidemiology students were about to get the real-world experience of a lifetime. âWe more or less deployed our entire research lab to the Department of Health to help them with their testing efforts,â he said. 2 ⢠Innovations
Schumaker collected data and helped prioritize sick patientsâ samples while his students aided the Wyoming Department of Healthâs public lab with COVID-19 testing for about three months. By the end of the semester and the studentsâ time at the lab, they had assisted with testing over 16,000 samples. âYou couldnât ask for a more practical training experience in a real-world environment than being deployed to a pandemic,â Schumaker said. âIt was extremely meaningful to watch our team be able to help in that capacity. Iâm really proud of them.â The students who helped with the COVID-19 testing efforts included Chris Anderson, Meagan Soehn, Kelsie Bowcutt, Samyr Wissar, Callie Klinghagen, Matios Indaylalu as well as UW alumni Taylor Fearing and Chayse Rowley. âOne of the best things about the University of Wyoming is the opportunity to include undergraduate students in practical real-world research and service. About half a dozen
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One of the best things about the University of Wyoming is the opportunity to include undergraduate students in practical real-world research and service.â - Dr. Brant Schumaker