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 Valhalla, NY - Disaster Medical Assistance Teams from New York and New Jersey will team up for a field training exercise simulating an influenza outbreak at a local college that overwhelms the local health system.
The FTX is scheduled for June 27th and 28th and will take place between the teams’ warehouse in Elmsford and Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, NY.
“We’ve worked with the New Jersey team before at other disasters and it’s very likely that we’d be deployed together for this type of event,” explains NY-2 Team Commander Dave Diamond. “This field training exercise will allow us to put into practice the many hours that both teams have spent preparing for pandemic outbreak.”
Over the course of the two days responders will get the chance to prepare a base of operations, work with their equipment and participate in a table-top exercise simulating a coordinated response between both teams as well as local emergency managers. Dave Wolfe, Commander of NJ-1 says although his team is ready to respond to this type of incident “we need to test our procedures and equipment in a controlled environment to ensure we are better prepared to care for real patients in their time of need.”
A Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) is a group of professional medical personnel (supported by a cadre of logistical and administrative staff) designed to provide medical care during a disaster or other event. Teams are fostered by the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS), under the direction of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NY-2 is a Type-1 DMAT, meaning they must be ready to respond anywhere in the continental United States within twelve hours and remain self-sufficient with enough food, water, equipment and medication to provide austere medical care for up to 200 patients a day for 72 hours.
The team includes doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, pharmacists, paramedics, EMTs, mental health and technical support specialists, all specially trained to render medical aid to disaster victims.
DMATs have recently responded to large-scale disasters, including the Red River Basin floods in 2009; Hurricanes Ike and Gustav in 2008; Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005; the Florida hurricanes of 2004; Hurricane Isabel in September 2003; the Bam, Iran earthquake in December 2003 and the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001. NDMS teams have also been deployed to support the G8 Summit, the Presidential Inauguration and National Republican and Democratic Conventions.
DMATs are principally a community resource available to support local, regional, and State requirements. However, as a national resource they can be federalized to provide interstate aid. Each DMAT in its state or local support role has a sponsoring organization, such as a major medical center, public health or safety agency, non-profit, public or private organization, supporting the team’s non-federal activities. Our team is sponsored by the Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, NY.
For more information on DMAT teams, the National Disaster Medical System or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, go to: http://www.hhs.gov/aspr/opeo/ndms/teams/dmat.html .
Metro New York 2 DMAT is sponsored by Westchester Medical Center
The NY-2 DMAT, in its federal role, is not supported or sponsored by any private organization or state or local government.
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