2009 News

June 25, 2009

Bucks County Punctuates Public Health Preparedness Efforts with Drill
Health Department, Emergency Management Tests Anthrax Response

Underscoring its emphasis on emergency preparedness, Bucks County today tested its response procedures during an exercise conducted with the county Health Department and Emergency Management Agency (EMA).  The exercise was conducted within US Department of Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program guidelines.

Set to an inhalation anthrax exposure scenario, the Health Department provided 1,680 doses of antibiotics at the point of dispensing (POD) located at William Tennent High School in Warminster during the one-hour drill.   As opposed to a pandemic flu scenario where every member of the public would receive a vaccination at the POD, under the head-of-household model, one person from each household would report to the POD to receive pill-form medication for their family.  This method distributes medications quickly, lessens the volume demand at each POD and reduces traffic.

Volunteers from the county’s Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) role-played as heads of households for the exercise. They re-circulated through the line as different role-players with a variety of characteristics, such as age, allergy information and number of family members. (Find out more about the MRC.)

Yesterday, all first responders and other critical personnel and their family members notionally received their dosages, which would enable them to work at the POD without risk of exposure in a real situation. These essential personnel received the word via RSAN (Roam Secure Alert Network), the same system that provides emergency alerts to county subscribers via ReadyNotifyPA (www.ReadyNotifyPA.org).

Commissioner Chairman Charles H. Martin commented on the training. “Our Health Department and Emergency Management Agency regularly rehearse our procedures so that we are ready for a real emergency,” he noted, adding that exercises provide the opportunity for officials to continually refine plans. Along with the Health Department and EMA, the county’s Major Incident Response Team (MIRT), comprised of police officers from local departments, provided physical security as they would in an actual emergency. 

“We would like to thank our volunteers from the Medical Reserve Corps and all our partners who contribute to public health preparedness in Bucks County,” Health Department Director David Damsker, MD, MPH.

For more information on personal preparedness, please visit ReadyBucks. To sign up for emergency alerts to a variety of electronic devices including cell phones and E-mail, visit www.ReadyNotifyPA.org.