title: Response to a Serious Flood: The St Joseph's Healthcare Experience.
abstract: Water spread like liquid fire damaging more than 60,000 sq. ft. of clinical and support space, bringing the emergency department (ED) and operating rooms at St Joe's to an abrupt halt. Staff mobilized immediately, calling a hospital-wide Code Aqua (flood) and Code Green (evacuation) for the ED, and launching into action to save equipment and supplies worth millions of dollars. Our path to recovery has been difficult, but we have emerged stronger as an organization. The urgent necessity of rethinking care led to radical innovation, particularly in the flow and care of patients admitted through the ED.
authors.affiliation: Curently manager, Special Projects with the Mental Health and Addictions program at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton, ON.
authors.forename: Tina
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Dhanoa
authors.affiliation: Vice president of Medical and Academic Affairs at St Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton and professor emeritus of Medicine at McMaster University.
authors.forename: Hugh
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fuller
authors.affiliation: Integrated manager, Special Projects and Integration, Diagnostic Imaging at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton (SJHH) and Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS). He has previously worked as manager, Strategic Initiatives and Special Projects in the Office of the President, SJHH.
authors.forename: Bryan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Herechuk
authors.affiliation: Corporate lead of Emergency Preparedness at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Trowbridge
authors.affiliation: Director of public affairs at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton and communications lead for the St. Joseph's Health System.
authors.forename: Victoria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Raab
authors.affiliation: Director of the Surgery Program and Site Director at the Charlton Campus of St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton.
authors.forename: Anne Marie
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: MacDonald
authors.affiliation: Nurse manager for the Emergency Department at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton.
authors.forename: Tara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Coffin-Simpson
authors.affiliation: Director of Emergency Department and General Internal Medicine program at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton.
authors.forename: Carolyn
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gosse
mesh_terms: D004189:Disaster Planning; D004190:Disasters; D055868:Floods; D006739:Hospital Administration; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D009864:Ontario