LESSONS REINFORCED

LESSONS REINFORCED

  1. Proper identification and location of the command post at a judicious distance from the incident allows the incident commander to perform his duties without undue distractions.
  2. The triage coordinator and checkout point supervisor required additional manpower.
  3. A safety officer must be appointed immediately by the incident commander. Triage and transportation operations require the protection of latex gloves in this type of incident. Contagious diseases are a fact of life, and in mass casualty incidents, exposures to blood and body fluids cannot be avoided. The safety officer would oversee operations and ensure compliance by all participants and report directly to the incident commander.
  4. Granted, this was a mock drill and the spread of contagious diseases was not a concern, but we in the fire service and emergency medical service must not let our guard down—even in drills.
  5. A check-off list is a must in an operation of this magnitude. There are too many things to commit to memory, and a mental jogger like this is a good management tool.
  6. In the triage and casualty collection areas, it can be difficult to distinguish the EMTs from the firefighters (litter bearers). (Paramedics wear blue helmets, so they are easily identifiable). Recommendations have been made to: mark the back of the EMTs’ running coats permanently; temporarily place an “X” with adhesive tape on the back of the coats; use yellow vests; and color-code their helmets.
  7. A troubleshooter can be appointed as a planning officer to observe all the operations (much like a devil’s advocate) and report any bottlenecks and recommendations to the incident commander. Many times you get so wrapped up in your aspect of the operation that you can’t see the forest for the trees. During this operation, our logistics officer didn’t have any water or foam problems, and his expertise was not used to the fullest.
  8. The use of video photography was extremely advantageous in our postincident analysis preparation.
  9. Rotation of personnel should be accomplished by schedule. The safety officer must delegate someone to time participants and rotate them accordingly. This assists in the proper maintenance of physical and mental well-being. Members doing the job at hand become so focused in their objectives that they don’t realize they are approaching exhaustion.
  10. The use of colored vests by the key players—incident commander, triage officer, casualty transportation officer, etc. —is necessary for proper identification.
  11. The ICS works, and allows the incident commander to manage the incident proactively.
  12. Units that participated in the drill put in a great deal of time in the preparation stages. This is a gcxid management tool to be better able to handle the real thing more effectively and efficiently.
  13. Stress debriefing is critical and must begin as soon after the incident as possible. It should be a consideration in all extremely stressful situations—not just in mass casualties.

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