%0 Journal Article
%T Assessing Healthcare Facilities Preparedness for Mass Fatalities Incident
%A Marisol Pe£¿a-Orellana
%A Ralph Rivera-Guti¨¦rrez
%A Juan A. G¨®nzalez-S¨¢nchez
%A Nilsa Padilla-El¨ªas
%A Heriberto Mar¨ªn Centeno
%A H¨¦ctor Alonso-Serra
%A Liza Mill¨¢n-P¨¦rez
%A Patricia Monserrate-V¨¢zquez
%J International Journal of Clinical Medicine
%P 525-531
%@ 2158-2882
%D 2013
%I Scientific Research Publishing
%R 10.4236/ijcm.2013.412091
%X <p class=\"MsoNormal\">
	<span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Background:</span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\"> Any
healthcare facility must be prepared to handle a dramatic increase in deaths
that can be produced by a catastrophic disaster. A mass fatality incident (MFI)
will significantly increase the usual number of deaths that hospi</span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">tals or forensic science services can
manage on a daily basis. A survey was conducted to assess </span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">the </span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">hospital emergency department level of
preparedness to deal with a</span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">n</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\"> MFI. </span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Objective:</span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\"> To examine healthcare
facilities level of preparedness for a</span></span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">n</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\"> MFI and morgue capacity. Methods: A total of 39 out of a sample of 44
hospitals participated in the study. Seven questionnaires were administered to
explore: hospital general characteristics; emergency plans; equipment and infrastructure;
collaborative agreements; personnel trainings; emergency communications;
laboratory facilities; treatment protocols; security; and, epidemiologic
surveillance. </span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Results:</span></span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Three-fourths (7</span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">9</span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">.</span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">5</span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">%) of the healthcare facilities reported
having a morgue, their average storage capacity was of three bodies. More than
two-thirds (66.7%) of the institutions stated </span><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">that </span><span lang=\"EN-US\"><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">they could not increase their morgue¡¯s
capacity. Most installations without a morgue do not possess an agreement with
any other institution for the management of bodies. Hospitals have a very
limited number of body bags utilized for the handling and transport of bodies. </span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Conclusion: </span><span
%K Hospitals
%K Morgues
%K Mass Casualties
%K Mass Fatalities
%K Puerto Rico
%U http://www.scirp.org/journal/PaperInformation.aspx?PaperID=40888