Health workers have undergone training in Darwin on how to deal with roadblocks and carjackings as they prepare to deploy to West Africa to fight Ebola.
They have learnt how to psychologically prepare to work in the difficult environment while also learning how to safely tackle the highly infectious disease.
The training was run by the World Health Organisation’s Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network.
Chairperson Tony Stewart said while the health workers would mostly be in relatively safe environments, the training was designed to make sure they could handle confronting situations.
“We want to make sure they’re psychologically prepared for that if they do find themselves facing a roadblock or a curfew,” he said.
“They will be facing a lot of confronting situations with communities who are stressed by the outbreak.”
But the main thrust of the training was on preparing to fight Ebola itself, Dr Stewart said.
Most of the health workers were from interstate, but some had travelled from as far as India, Japan and the Philippines.
The hot and humid weather in Darwin meant it was the perfect place to simulate West Africa.
One health worker, Leslee Roberts, was preparing to head to Sierra Leone on Monday night.
She said the training had been very helpful.
“It’s looked at the disease itself but also security and safety issues,” she said.
“We’ve had people here who have already been in West Africa and come back and really given us good idea about what’s happening on the ground now.”