The OUCH Pager program is available to protect employees and students of UNMC, The Nebraska Medical Center and UNMC Physicians who may be exposed to any biological agent.
“We have a system in place that provides immediate help after an exposure and resources to help decide if treatment is necessary,” said Philip Smith, M.D., professor of infectious diseases at UNMC.
Pager number
Employees and students are to report all biologic exposures by calling the OUCH Pager at 402-888-OUCH (6824).
A group of experienced nurses in the medical communications call center answer these calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Information online
In the event of an exposure, employees can also access information on the hospital intranet.
“Many agents have well established treatment guidelines such as HIV and Hepatitis B, but some biologics do not have much written as far as medical guidelines,” Dr. Smith said.
To address this, UNMC researched many agents used in research on campus and developed a user-friendly algorithm that clinicians across campus can reference quickly when an employee is exposed. New algorithms will be added and updated as needed.
As always, safety first
Dr. Smith urged employees to always keep safety in mind.
“Wear your protective equipment, practice good hand washing and it’s very important to stay current on your vaccines,” he said.