When Katelyn Jelden, a recent graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, arrived in August to begin her studies in the UNMC College of Public Health’s Environmental, Agricultural and Occupational Health program, little did she know she would be caught up in a whirlwind of international activity related to Ebola.
The Minden, Neb., native and graduate assistant was working with her professors — John Lowe, Ph.D., and Shawn Gibbs, Ph.D. They were inundated with work before, during and after the care of Ebola patients. It is their job to ensure the safety of health professionals while they care for Ebola patients, whether it’s in an ambulance, patient care area such as the Biocontainment Unit, a lab where lab samples are tested, or equipment used.
Jelden helped wherever she could, including preparing ambulances to transport an Ebola patient and making sure supplies were ready for arrival of the patient.
The protocols Drs. Lowe and Gibbs were using were in hot demand from institutions around the country.
They asked her if she would be interested in drafting a couple of papers for submission to scientific journals. She accepted the challenge. They told her, “Here are the protocols. Write up the first draft and if it’s something we can publish, you’ll get an authorship.”
She did an outstanding job.
“To which we turned around and said you have three days to write another one,” Dr. Lowe said. “She was finishing up her first semester and already had two papers. A third she drafted and has been accepted.”
The papers have been shared with the world on transporting Ebola patients from airport to hospital, and how to decontaminate areas used for patient transportation and treatment.
Working with Drs. Lowe and Gibbs has been an outstanding experience — “sometimes intense, always fun,” Jelden said. “They’re great people — as mentors, scientists, leaders — and I’ve been lucky to learn from and work with them and the entire Biocontainment Unit team.
“In writing three papers, I was happy to help the always-busy Drs. Lowe and Gibbs,” Jelden said. “Publishing was unexpected — a part of working with Ebola and the Biocontainment Unit — and the weight of it all is still sinking in. I’m grateful for the opportunity presented by Drs. Lowe and Gibbs and to contribute to the Ebola fight.”
Great job! Congratulations!