15 'til 50: Planning for Patient Surge in a Mass Casualty Incident

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15 'til 50: Planning for Patient Surge in a Mass Casualty Incident
Christopher Riccardi, Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center Torrance Terry Stone, Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital

We all know that it's a question of "when", not "if": at some point hospitals will experience a mass casualty incident that will tax resources, impact personnel, and require decisive action. Hospital staff may have mere minutes of notice before they're expected to help treat an influx of patients whose injuries or illnesses may vary widely. The 15 'till 50 Mass Casualty Incident (MCI) Response program was developed to help hospitals be able to respond to an influx of 50 patients within 15 minutes of incident notification. This innovative program sets out the planning and logistical considerations that all hospitals should incorporate into their preparedness efforts, and outlines ways hospitals can develop their own MCI plan. Attendees will be introduced to the MCI Plan Template, which allows hospital planners to create custom MCI plans and will also gain a better understanding of hospital MCI planning and exercises.

Presented by:

Christopher Riccardi, Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center Torrance
Chris Riccardi is the Emergency Management Officer, Disaster Preparedness and Project Coordinator for Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center Torrance, California. His responsibilities include oversight of the hospital's management of the federally funded Healthcare Preparedness Program and development of various hospital training programs related to disaster preparedness. One of these programs, "15 Minutes `til 50 Patients" Mass Casualty Incident response, has recently been recognized by the California Department of Public Health under the Innovation Solutions category in 2015. Chris currently presides as Chair for the California Hospital Association's Emergency Management Advisory Committee. Chris also represents hospitals as a member of the Los Angeles County EMS/Department of Public Health Disaster Coalition Advisory Committee. In addition, Mr. Riccardi serves as a Hospital Disaster Management Training (HDMT) Instructor with the Hospital Association of Southern California educating hospital leadership in disaster preparedness throughout Southern California. Chris is proud to be a Board member of COPE- Preparedness which is a San Pedro/Harbor Area not-for-profit community organization "promoting emergency preparedness through proactive community outreach".

Terry Stone, Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital
Terry Stone is the Safety Officer and Emergency Preparedness Manager for Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital in Valencia, California. Terry is a registered nurse and is certified in health care quality and emergency management. The majority of her career has been in nursing, administrative leadership positions, and emergency management in the acute-care hospital setting.