MEDICAL CARE BRANCH
Many of the incidents that a hospital will encounter are likely to involve ill or injured victims. The Medical Care Branch is responsible for addressing the provision of acute and continuous care of the incident victims as well as those already in the hospital for medical care. The Casualty Care Unit Leader will usually be located in the Emergency Department but can appoint additional command personnel to coordinate triage and treatment activities if needed. These activities should be conducted in accordance with the hospital’s mass casualty annex to the hospital EOP. It will be important that patients arriving at the hospital are quickly and correctly triaged to a definitive treatment location and medical care is not delayed waiting in a treatment area. The Triage Officers treatment priority should be plainly identified on a disaster tag or band. It will also be important that a quick but reliable patient registration process is implemented to avoid delays in patient care or confusion over patient location.
Patients contaminated by hazardous material should be received by properly trained and protected personnel (see HazMat Branch) using a standardized and well practiced decontamination procedure before they are allowed into the main hospital. In this situation, only lifesaving interventions should be rendered during decontamination, with definitive care provided in the hospital. Inpatient services (Inpatient Unit), Outpatient services (Outpatient Unit), and clinical support services (Clinical Support Services Unit) will also be coordinated by the Medical Care Branch.
To meet surge capacity needs, the Incident Command Staff should refer to the surge capacity annex in the EOP. A well-written plan will provide guidance for phases of implementation as more personnel and treatment areas can be operationalized.
The Medical Care Branch Director will work with the Logistics Branch to ensure needed personnel, equipment, medication, and supplies are requested, and with the Staging Manager to ensure their delivery to needed areas. Making prudent decisions will be crucial when needed resources are in short supply. Guidance will come from the HCC, who will coordinate the request for needed items through the local EOC. It is also important that the medical care being rendered is uniform across the healthcare system. The local public health department or RHCC will provide guidance for area hospitals in this regard. Additional standardization will occur when all area HCCs talk with one another on a regular basis via facilitated teleconferences or face-to-face meetings.
Patients contaminated by hazardous material should be received by properly trained and protected personnel (see HazMat Branch) using a standardized and well practiced decontamination procedure before they are allowed into the main hospital. In this situation, only lifesaving interventions should be rendered during decontamination, with definitive care provided in the hospital. Inpatient services (Inpatient Unit), Outpatient services (Outpatient Unit), and clinical support services (Clinical Support Services Unit) will also be coordinated by the Medical Care Branch.
To meet surge capacity needs, the Incident Command Staff should refer to the surge capacity annex in the EOP. A well-written plan will provide guidance for phases of implementation as more personnel and treatment areas can be operationalized.
The Medical Care Branch Director will work with the Logistics Branch to ensure needed personnel, equipment, medication, and supplies are requested, and with the Staging Manager to ensure their delivery to needed areas. Making prudent decisions will be crucial when needed resources are in short supply. Guidance will come from the HCC, who will coordinate the request for needed items through the local EOC. It is also important that the medical care being rendered is uniform across the healthcare system. The local public health department or RHCC will provide guidance for area hospitals in this regard. Additional standardization will occur when all area HCCs talk with one another on a regular basis via facilitated teleconferences or face-to-face meetings.
Position Specific Resources
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HICS Forms
References
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