Staff at Coast Plaza Hospital suited up with colleagues from St. Francis Medical Center for a special exercise held at Whittier Hospital May 17.
Their assignment: a decontamination drill.
“Key to the exercise was completion of an inventory of everyone’s equipment to ensure their safety – a suit without holes, boots intact, Powered Air Purifying Respirator blowing sufficient air, along with a check of each person’s vitals,” explained Diana Mata, emergency management officer at Coast Plaza.
Once cleared for the drill, employees began decontaminating patients – played by volunteer actors from other hospitals – using Whittier’s Decon Shower System. Mata reports that the evaluator was impressed by the team’s performance, including their knowledge of proper donning and doffing of their protective gear.
“Coast Plaza Hospital participates in the Hospital Preparedness Program, which provides funding for equipment, education, training and drills to better prepare our hospital for any type of disaster and to be able to help other hospitals in our region if one were to be impacted more than others,” Mata said.
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