FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                           

For more information, contact:

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Communications and Marketing

Anne W. Manning – (901) 448-4072

Sheila Champlin – (901) 448-4957

 

UT Health Science Center Implements Emergency Alert System

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Memphis, Tenn. (September 4, 2007) – Faculty, staff and students at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) are now signing up for a free emergency alert text messaging service: e2Campus.  The secure system will be used only to deliver critical messages in the event of an emergency.  

The university has contracted with e2Campus, a mass notification and text messaging firm, to make the system available for this academic year.  Operated by campus police, the system will be used to shut down the campus for emergencies such as gas leaks, bomb threats and events involving an active shooter. 

“This project has been on our radar screen for quite a while but, naturally, the Virginia Tech experience pushed it to the top of our priority list,” said Ida Upchurch, chief of UTHSC Campus Police.

“Currently, we have a campus population of approximately 5,000 faculty, staff and students in Memphis,” noted Chief Upchurch.  “The e2Campus system underscores our commitment to their safety and to keeping them well informed, especially in the event of an emergency.”

Benefits of the e2Campus system include:

·        Alerts can be sent to e-mail addresses, PDAs, cell phones and pagers;

·        No advertising content can be delivered;

·        The system will function effectively even when cell traffic increases during an emergency.

 

The same system is currently being launched on the University of Tennessee main campus in Knoxville and on all UTHSC campuses, including the Graduate School of Medicine and College of Pharmacy facilities on the Knoxville campus, as well as the College of Medicine campus in Chattanooga.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is focused on a four-tier mission of education, research, clinical care and public service, all in support of a single goal: to improve the health of Tennesseans.  Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main campus, which includes six colleges, is located in Memphis.  UTHSC has additional College of Medicine and College of Pharmacy campuses in Knoxville and a College of Medicine campus in Chattanooga.  For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

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