“The physician response to the disaster in West was spontaneous, immediate, and overwhelming in scope.”
of planning for unexpected public health emergencies.
“Public health preparedness is a jour-
ney, not a destination. We’re continu- ously working to improve our public health and medical plans, policies, and procedures,” said Dr. Riggins, a member of the TMA Council on Science and Pub- lic Health. Dr. Duchamp says she’s proud so
many medical professionals rose to the challenge presented by the incident. She also acknowledges the need to improve local emergency preparedness efforts. At the time of the emergency, the
while monitoring his Facebook feed. “My Facebook friends were comment- ing on the incident, so I called the Hill- crest emergency department to ask about incoming casualties. I arrived to help around 9 pm, just as the first injured pa- tients arrived. The events of the evening were both tragic and inspiring in terms of the medical response,” he said. Dr. Holland sutured six wounded patients that night. Physicians treated about 110 patients at Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center/Scott & White Health- care and about 50 patients at Providence Health Center. Physicians at Scott and White Memorial Hospital in Temple, Parkland Hospital in Dallas, and John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth also treated victims. “The physician response to the disas- ter in West was spontaneous, immedi- ate, and overwhelming in scope. Neither Hillcrest nor Providence officially called
for physician support, but a significant bulk of the medical staff, representing a broad spectrum of specialties, showed up,” he said. Overall, the medical response to the explosion in West impressed Dr. Holland. “Both Hillcrest and Providence hospi-
tals kicked into gear with a response I didn’t even think possible. Patients were treated in a timely manner, and medi- cal staff did a great job of getting people into the system fast,” Dr. Holland said. Waco internist and McLennan County Medical Society President Lisa Duchamp, MD, traveled to West the night of the explosion and helped triage patients at the community center with her medical partner, Felicia Macik, DO.
“It was a true honor to assist the peo- ple of West who are not only our family and friends, but who are also our pa- tients and coworkers,” Dr. Duchamp said.
Bradford Holland, MD
Lisa Duchamp, MD 42 TEXAS MEDICINE July 2013 Emily Kidd, MD
Room for improvement William “Chip” Rig- gins, MD, executive director and local health authority of Williamson County and Cities Health District, says the incident in West is another reminder of the importance
McLennan County Medical Society lacked a solid plan for getting physicians involved in the response and commu- nicating with them, Dr. Duchamp says. Since then, the organization met to dis- cuss defining its role in emergencies and working with emergency medical service (EMS) and trauma professionals, hospi- tal officials, and those involved in com- munity disaster preparedness. “Once we have a plan and a structure set up, we will be better prepared to pro- vide up-to-date information to physician members while assessing the commu- nity’s medical needs and responding ap- propriately in the wake of an emergency. We want to be as much help as possible and work as efficiently and effectively as possible,” Dr. Duchamp said. Many patients required ongoing med-
ical care for up to two weeks after the disaster. The medical society emailed members the week following the explo- sion to ask them to assist patients at the West community center. Dr. Holland heeded the call. He and other physicians traveled to West to treat minor injuries that residents suffered while rummaging through debris and to help them obtain medications.
Response system in action The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) is the lead state agency for public health and medical activities surrounding emergency preparedness and response and is a member of the Texas Division of Emergency Manage- ment (TDEM) Council. “During an emergency, DSHS ac- tivates the State Medical Operations
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