Jun 10, 2008 8:17 pm US/Mountain
Hospitals Prepare For Convention With Mock Drill
DENVER (CBS4) ―
The Democratic National Convention is still more than two months away, but Tuesday Denver hospitals prepared for a worst-case by holding a mock disaster drill in preparation for the convention.
It started with an emergency page sent out to all Denver-area hospitals. The page said as many as 20,000 people may have been injured in an explosion at Pepsi Center. That's when the hospitals went into action as part of their mock disaster drill.
A subsequent report said the injured were subjected to radiation exposure and might be contaminated. About 15 to 20 mock victims were first taken to a decontamination tent at Presbyterian/St. Luke's Medical Center.
"Otherwise, they're going to contaminate not only other patients, but the entire emergency department," said Robert Starke, PSL Safety Director.
As the mock victims screamed for medical attention, there was another twist for the medical staff as new information came in.
"What we've learned is that some of the patients were actually seizing at the side of the building," Starke said. "Which means that it probably is not radiation, but it has the potential to be a chemical exposure."
The hospital's CEO, Mimi Roberson, said the drill went very well with every physical exercise and procedure monitored by evaluators.
"You compare it to standards," Roberson said. "There are emergency standards that we all have and we all follow, so what we do is say how well did we do with the information we had, and what other information would we want to have in the future."
Preparing for mass casualties is part of every hospital's responsibility required by law, and Tuesday drill will be thoroughly reviewed. The critique should be ready in a couple of weeks.
Several area hospitals took part in the mock disaster drills, including University Hospital and Children's Hospital.
Additional Resources
• For complete coverage of the planning for the 2008 Democratic convention in Denver, as well as information about how to volunteer and for a list of helpful links, visit the Denver 2008 DNC Convention Section.
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