18 January 2011

Mock Disaster Needs Bloodied Bodies

Canoe British Columbia - Picture this.
 
A railway car lies on its side in Canoe.
 
Bodies are strewn about the scene. Blood pours out of gaping wounds, arms and legs hang at awkward angles.
 
In the stunned aftermath, the sound of moans and cries permeate the air. But they are drowned out by the strident sirens of police, ambulance, and fire rescue trucks arriving on scene.
 
Soon survivors are being separated from those who have lost their lives, their injuries assessed, and care dispensed accordingly.
 
This is but a brief description of a complex and realistic emergency exercise planned for Tuesday, 29 Mar 2011 in the nearby community.
 
A number of agencies have been involved in the more than two years of planning and Shuswap Emergency Plan (SEP) co-ordinator Cliff Doherty is hoping area residents will help with the realism aspect of the exercise and volunteer their time as casualty volunteers.
 
"It was a collaboration of several thoughts coming together," says Doherty, noting Rocky Mountaineer officials were expressing an interest in practising their emergency training, and BC Ambulance had also expressed an interest in practising a multi-casualty triage situation. Shuswap Lake General hospital officials were also keen to practise their processes for a large-scale event. "When we put all these wishes, wants, needs, and objectives together in one pot, we came up with a passenger train derailment scenario in Canoe."
 
"Kingpin" planners include CP Rail, Rocky Mountaineer, hospital, fire rescue, RCMP, and MOE," he says.
 
"SEP played a co-ordination role to bring the plan to fruition," Doherty says. "We plan to make it extremely realistic and we need a sizeable number of volunteers to help us with the exercise."
 
The program is seeking volunteers, generally between the ages of 45 and 65, who are in good health because there could be requirement for many to remain stationary in one position for upwards of four hours. The makeup used with injury simulation contains latex and silicone, so it is also important a person volunteering not have an allergy to these products.
 
Casualty volunteers will be needed for a period of time to be determined by the injury assigned to them, something that will be done at meetings well in advance of the exercise.
 
These simulated injuries will be created by TASCMET Clinical FX, an organization that works closely with paramedics being trained prior to deployment to Afghanistan.
 
Volunteers need to be aware the makeup used for simulation is very realistic and may be visually distressing to some individuals. They also need to dress appropriately for the weather and know that some of their clothing may be damaged during the exercise. As well, casualty volunteers will be required to stay in character during a four-hour period and some will be transported to Shuswap Lake General Hospital.
 
Volunteers will be asked to attend an introduction and orientation session on Saturday, 12 Feb 2011, from 9 a.m. to noon. This will be followed up by a day-long session on 19 Mar 2011.
 
Both sessions will be held at the Columbia Shuswap Regional District Boardroom, 781 Marine Park Drive.
 
Information sheets and registration forms can be picked up at the CSRD office or at Salmon Arm City Hall. If you require more information, please call the Shuswap Emergency Program (SEP) at 250-833-5927.
 
Barb Brouwer.