BEAUFORT, S.C. - The emergency room at the Beaufort Memorial Hospital received extra training during Vigilant Guard 2008. Vigilant Guard 2008 was a three-day exercise designed to test the ability of local, state and federal authorities to respond to a major disaster in southern South Carolina. The April 21-23 exercise, organized by the National Guard, simulated the response to a major earthquake centered in Beaufort County. "It was great training, this made us even more ready." said Brad Hartl, Lead Technician in Radiology at Beaufort Memorial Hospital.
As part of the exercise, the hospital staff went on alert. They were not made aware of how many people were being sent to them or the type of injuries. Beaufort Memorial was one of four hospitals to receive mock casualties and wounded from the various training caused by the earthquake scenario.
Hartl said the Vigilant Guard exercise helped staff understand the importance of training and the need to be prepared in case of a real life earthquake or hurricane.
Trish Deems, Registered Nurse and Director of Education for the hospital said the training was awesome. "It gave staff the chance to develop their thinking ability and teamwork skills in an emergency situation," said Deems.
She said the joint exercise helped meet the mission of Beaufort Memorial Hospital, "to deliver superior health care service to patients and to improve the health of our community."
"Everyone was moving with a purpose. I was looking to see if the staff was practicing infectious control practices such as using hand sanitizer and wearing gloves while giving care," said Deems. Hospital staff started off a little shaky, but as the scenario moved forward they were quite successful in coming together to exceed the standard."
James Porter, Communications Manager for the hospital said, "One of the lessons learned was that we need to have more radios and train personnel on using them." Kevin Kremer, Department Director of the Emergency Room said, "We need to make sure our radio communications system is available and ready to prior to an emergency."
Hartl and Deems both said it's important for the local hospital and the National Guard to continue to work together to ensure everyone is able to meet future emergency situations with a successful plan.