title: A hospital as victim and responder: the Sepulveda VA Medical Center and the Northridge earthquake.
abstract: Many hospital emergency plans focus on the hospital as a disaster responder, with a fully operational medical facility, able to receive and treat mass casualties from a clearly defined accident scene. However, hospitals need to prepare a response for extreme casualty events such as earthquakes, tornadoes, or hurricanes. This article describes the planning, mitigation, response, and recovery of a major medical--surgical center thrust into a victim responder role following the devastating Northridge earthquake. The subsequent evacuation and care of patients, treatment of casualties, incident command, prior education and training, and recovery issues are addressed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Sepulveda, California, USA.
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Chavez
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Binder
mesh_terms: D002140:California; D003142:Communication; D004189:Disaster Planning / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004190:Disasters; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D017146:Models, Organizational; D014187:Transportation of Patients / Q000458:organization & administration