Looking for training and certification options? Had a great conversation with Mehran Rastakhiz, PhD., MPA (Chairman, Board of Directors) at C4SEM. Check them out at C4SEM.org.

Areas of emphasis include:

Certified Critical Infrastructure Protection Specialist (CCIPS)
Certified Counter Terrorism Specialist (CCTS)
Certified Emergency Management Specialist (CEMS)
Certified Emergency Operation Center (EOC) Manager (CEOCM)
Certified Homeland Security Manager (CHSM)
Certified Watch Officer (CWO) (Coming Soon)

Check out their WOUNDED WARRIORS PROGRAM
Beginning July 2010, the Center for Security and Emergency Management will grant C4SEM Certification Program scholarships to 12 of our country's Wounded Warriors. Scholarships will be awarded on the basis of financial need and performance and will focus on heroes who are seeking advancement or new skills.


As always, join the ongoing discussions at Hospital / Clinical Emergency Management

Also, join me at Linkedin and on Twitter (ClinicalEM)

Stay safe - dp

Looking for a can't miss conference this month? Check out the 2010 Bicoastal Counter Terrorism Summit being presented by The HALO Corporation. San Diego, CA: June 7th ‐11th, 2010 and if you miss that, Ft. Lauderdale, FL: July 12‐16th, 2010.

I have personally been speaking with Mr. Brad Barker (President at The HALO Corporation) and know that this training is TRULY a no miss. Check out the week long lineup for the 2010 conference in San Diego here

The HALO Corporation is a non-governmental organization (NGO) founded by former Special Operations, National Security, and Intelligence personnel. HALO exists to provide safety and security for those in need and to improve: force protection, all aspects of security, humanitarian aid, and disaster response.

As always, join the ongoing discussions at Hospital / Clinical Emergency Management

Also, join me at Linkedin and on Twitter (ClinicalEM)

Stay safe - dp

I don't know how your day went today...but our Pediatric Trauma center performed at levels that exceeded my expectations. While there is undoubtedly a lot to learn, a lot of new information and findings to sort through, the value of a full scale exercise cannot be underestimated in its ability to drive us ever closer to "preparedness".

If you have not already, visit the Radiation Emergency Medical Management (REMM) site (HHS) as it is an unbelievable wealth of resources and information for RDD/dirty bomb events (like the GG drill conducted today.

As always, stay safe and please join the group on LinkedIn (Hospital / Clinical Emergency Management) to continue discussions about preparedness and Clinical Emergency Management!

DJ

Join me at Linkedin and on Twitter (ClinicalEM)

Here is a great example of an active shooter scenario being played out INVOLVING the hospital and what it will mean in terms of clinical/security operations and management.

Shooter scenario tests readiness at Lejeune

Thoughts?

Join the ongoing discussions at Hospital / Clinical Emergency Management

Also, join me at Linkedin and on Twitter (ClinicalEM)

Stay safe - dp

While it is mainly still just a trend overseas, attacks on medical facilities (or against those arriving at medical facilities) continues to be a concerning trend.

In the news TODAY:

8 dead in hospital attack in Pakistan

"The explosion occurred at a hospital in the city of Quetta, police said. Included in the dead were a journalist and a police officer, hospital officials said. More than 10 people were injured in the blast, the officials said" (click on headline to read more)

Thoughts?

Join the ongoing discussions at Hospital / Clinical Emergency Management

Also, join me at Linkedin and on Twitter (ClinicalEM)

Stay safe - dp

If you have not had the opportunity, or found the time, to read through the Next Challenge in Healthcare Preparedness: Catastrophic Health Events (Preparedness Report) you need to put it on your immediate "to do" list. The report outlines some major challenges faced by the healthcare infrastructure in meeting future challenges (in what is already an often over capacity system of hospitals and clinics).

The report will serve as a working blueprint for clinical emergency management and the changes (and challenges) that will need to take place.

"A key finding of the Evaluation Report was that, while much progress has been made in healthcare preparedness for common medical disasters, the U.S. healthcare system is ill-prepared for catastrophic health events (CHE), and there is as yet no clear strategy that will enable an effective response to such an event. For this report, the definition of "catastrophic health event" is that put forth in Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21 (HSPD-21): an event that could result in tens or hundreds of thousands of sick or injured individuals who would require access to healthcare resources" (UPMC, 2010)

Join me at LinkedIn and discuss this and many other topics integrating healthcare, emergency management, and counter-terrorism (Hospital / Clinical Emergency Management)

Stay Safe - dp

Since the last time I posted, my colleagues and I have been spending a great deal of time constructing a "blueprint" for next steps and how we need to proceed as Emergency/Disaster/Terrorism planners in the healthcare industry. This will not be an easy task. We need to move out of our comfort zone. We need to think more critically (and globally) about the things that may be coming our way. If current and historical events are any indication (and they generally are), the trend for attacks aimed at healthcare facilities should be raising red flags, and strategies aimed at mitigating our blind spots becoming an immediate priority for all of us. The possibility of Mumbai, Baghdad, and Karachi type events being carried out against American hospitals needs to be seriously considered as we continually plan, test, and train our "all hazards" approaches to response. Attacks with automatic weapons and small explosives are increasingly more common around the globe; and even worse, attacks aimed directly at medical personnel are on the rise.

Reevaluate you HVA. Look at your response plans and capabilities for active shooter, explosives incidents, hostage situations, lockdown capability, and access control. Reconsider that a "terrorism" event may not be limited to CBRN (remember the "E"). We have drilled and drilled for chem/bio attacks, but we need to consider the reality of low tech chaos being brought to our door, and not just preparing to receive the victims.

What are the next steps? Stay tuned.

You are also invited to engage in this topic by following DJ at LinkedIn, on Twitter, and also by joining the discussion at the Hospital / Clinical Emergency Management group on LinkedIn.

Stay safe - dp

In case you are not already following the website regularly (and you should), I found this great opportunity which is coming up soon!

The Joint Commission News Releases
February 11, 2010
JCR to Host April 8-9 Emergency Preparedness Conference

Learn from the experts who develop and survey the standards

Stay safe - DJ

With events both recent and past indicating a trend to attack hospitals (or the victims and responders at them), we must continue to prepare for, and always remain vigilant against, possible attacks on our facilities. From the attacks in Mumbai to very recent events in Karachi, a surge in hospital related terror incidents should create concern…and more importantly a new offensive/defensive posture.

What can we be doing now to prepare? Be cognizant of probing behaviors. Many of the worst tragedies we have seen involved "probing" prior to attack (Murrah Building in OKC, 9/11, 2005 London bombings, etc). In the United States there have been widely reported incidents of unknown persons posing as staff or "officials" (JC imposters) to gain access to hospitals. As in any facility, do not share sensitive information and DEMAND credentials and I.D. when appropriate. Do not be afraid to question and challenge!

From an article in The New York Sun regarding probing:
"a series of incidents in that period in which people were caught taking unauthorized pictures of hospitals, asking for hospital blueprints, requesting information about the whereabouts of medicines that would be used in biological attacks, and inquiring about the institutions' capacity for cardiac care, trauma care, helicopter access, and private rooms." (NY SUN)

Challenge. Question. Verify.

Stay safe - DJ