Hospital practices decontamination
Wendy Davisson acts the part of a farm-truck passenger with a broken arm during Wednesday’s emergency decontamination practice at Kalispell Regional Medical Center. Greg Louden, left, an emergency-room nurse, helps Davisson into a tent where a paramedic began decontaminating her from the fertilizer to which she was exposed. Kristine Paulsen/Daily Inter Lake
By CANDACE CHASE
The Daily Inter Lake
The voice over the intercom at Kalispell Regional Medical Center sounded chilling.
"All visitors and staff use the emergency department doors only. All other doors are restricted until further notice."
But then patients were reassured that it was just a drill.
A computerized system immediately locked all doors except those leading into the emergency room. But even there, staff kept a tight rein on anyone gaining access as pretend victims of a farm truck-versus-car collision arrived outside the ER.
A pregnant woman "contaminated" with fertilizer waited in the parking lot as an emergency room team rapidly rolled out and inflated a portable blue decontamination unit.
A woman driver, getting into her role, screamed at the victims from the farm truck side of the accident as they rolled up to the hospital.
"Your truck ran right in front of me! It was not my fault."
The occupant of the farm truck suffered a broken leg in the mishap that doused everyone involved with toxic chemicals.
Instead of rushing into the emergency room and contaminating other patients, the building or staff, the injured were intercepted by a nurse and paramedic in gray space-like suits with hoods, pointed plastic face masks and breathing packs.
The nurse and paramedic steered the ambulatory patients to the left side of the tent. It contains three compartments for undressing, showering and then dressing in clean clothes.
Nonambulatory patients, such as the woman with a broken leg, went into the right side. It was equipped with a long, roller-topped table to accept a gurney.
This ER drama was an orchestrated exercise of the hospital's contamination control procedures. A joint operation of the hospital and Kalispell Fire Department, the event involved upwards of 50 people.
Kalispell Fire Department Chief Dan Diehl called the scenario "an excellent live classroom experience" in the media invitation to the Wednesday training exercise.
As part of the rehearsal, hospital spokesman Jim Oliverson donned a white vest designating his public information role. He outlined the medical center's goals as:
. Preventing contamination.
. Providing seamless continuity of care.
. Keeping the public confident of the hospital's ability to care for victims while protecting others.
According to Oliverson, hospital staffers had their adrenaline pumping even though the scenario was simulated. As cameras recorded the action, he said he was pleased with the staff's expertise with the decontamination unit.
"I'm impressed by how quickly they got it up," he said. "All of our hearts are beating kind of quickly."
Armed with air compressors, hoses for water, electric cords and a heating unit, the emergency-room team stretched out and inflated the tent-like decontamination unit within a few minutes. A bladder was attached to catch the hazardous materials brushed and showered off victims.
Bill Boyd, hospital safety officer, said the unit was purchased through a Homeland Security Grant made to Flathead County. The exercise was to practice decontamination preparedness using the equipment.
Inside the hospital during the drill, plans called for the house supervisor to take the first step of forming an incident command to secure the hospital as the emergency-room team handled decontamination procedures.
Along with decontaminating the people, Boyd said the team collects, bags and tags their clothing for possible forensic examination if needed.
According to Oliverson, the Wednesday event is one of several exercises the hospital conducts each year. He said staffers also learn from experiences such as one that occurred shortly after Sept. 11, 2001.
A woman ran into the hospital, screaming that she was contaminated with anthrax. As it turned, she had panicked over snack-food contamination.
"It was the dreaded Dorito dust," Oliverson said with a laugh. "But we learned from it that we have to restrict access. The hospital could have been contaminated."
Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com.