Information from Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital
Hospital employees, volunteers, as well as local and regional emergency responders throughout Southwest Georgia will take part in a mock disaster full scale exercise today.
The full-scale exercise is being conducted in collaboration with local, regional and state agencies with the purpose of testing the preparedness and response of involved agencies and hospitals.
Approximately seven hospitals, six EMS services, and several local and state agencies are participating within the counties of Ben Hill, Dougherty, Lee, Randolph, Sumter, Tift and Worth.
The scenario for the full scale exercise is the formation of multiple tornadoes in several counties in which tornadoes make direct hits, producing mass casualties.
A large number of tornado 'victims' will arrive at hospitals emergency rooms, stretching capacity of each of the hospital's resources.
Although this is a DRILL, it is a test of the ability of those involved to respond to an actual disaster and assess gaps so improvements can be made.
Hospitals are required by the Joint Commission accreditation organization to have disaster response plans in place and conduct periodic drills for training and improvement purposes.
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Hospitals are required to have disaster response plans in place and conduct periodic drills
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