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