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SALT LAKE CITY — When a major disaster happens and there are major casualties, are hospitals nationwide prepared to help patients from the disaster area?
The Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salt Lake City is one of 57 federal coordination centers throughout the U.S. that could be called to help in such an event. These centers are responsible for receiving patients from disaster areas and coordinating with local National Disaster Medical System hospitals.
The hospital runs drills every other year to make sure things run smoothly when disasters hit; such as natural disasters, major transportation accidents, technological disasters and acts of terrorism, including weapons of mass destruction events.
Tuesday, the veterans hospital held a national drill to make sure everyone was ready. The scenario: five days ago at 10:14 a.m., a 9.2-magnitude earthquake hit Anchorage, Alaska. That triggered a 40-foot devastating tsunami that wiped out the port of Anchorage.
"It's overwhelmed the local authorities up there,” said Jim Stitikus, Salt Lake VA Hospital emergency management coordinator. “They have asked for assistance from the federal (government), the president has activated NDMS program. Two planes deliver 60 patients to the Utah Air National Guard Base and some pets, too.”
Once activated, the federal coordination centers organize medical, mental health and emergency management specialists from the community to assess the health of the victims and get them the care they need in hospitals in Salt Lake, Utah and Davis counties.
Anytime there's a major national disaster, the VA is able to step up within the community and coordinate resources within the community and support the nation in responding to the major event.
–Steve Young, director of the Veterans Affairs Salt Lake City Health Care System
The drill is coordinated with the Utah Department of Health, the Bureau of Emergency Medical Services and Preparedness, the Utah Division of Emergency Management and the Utah Air National Guard.
“Anytime there’s a major national disaster, the VA is able to step up within the community and coordinate resources within the community and support the nation in responding to the major event,” said Steve Young, director of the Veterans Affairs Salt Lake City Health Care System.
The National Disaster Medical System was activated a year ago when Superstorm Sandy slammed into the East Coast. At that time, the Salt Lake veterans hospital was put on standby. But nine years ago when Hurricane Katrina hammered New Orleans, the Salt Lake facility did play a role.
“People were evacuated from New Orleans to Salt Lake City, and it was the VA coordinating on the ground in Salt Lake City along with this vast partnership with other organizations in the community,” Young said.
About 600 people came to Utah. Most evacuees made their way to relatives in other states shortly after arriving in Utah.
One lesson that was learned from Katrina was that victims with pets won’t always leave them behind. So, during the drill Tuesday, the hospital was ready to send pets to local shelters.
