Washoe County Offers Pediatric Disaster Response Training

Training will help community respond to pediatric needs during disasters

How would Washoe County handle a multi-casualty incident where the majority of victims are children, like the recent bus crash in Arkansas?

The National Commission on Children and Disasters recently identified that emergency responders, first receivers, and emergency management personnel have reduced effectiveness in responding to pediatric patients and their unique needs and considerations, due to a gap in training.

To address these training needs, Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) facilitators will be in Reno December 12-13, 2018, to deliver a special training to over 50 first responders, healthcare personnel, and public health staff to better prepare our community to respond to pediatric needs during disasters and multi-casualty incidents. The training will be presented by the National Emergency Response and Rescue Training Center through TEEX free-of-charge because of collaboration with Nevada Division of Emergency Management, Washoe County Emergency Management and Homeland Security, and the Washoe County Health District Epidemiology and Public Health Preparedness Division.

"Our first responders do their best to be prepared for any type of disaster response, whether it's a natural or man-made incident," said Washoe County District Board of Health Member Mike Brown. "As the oversight agency for emergency response, Health District staff continuously train, exercise and test our abilities and our partnering agencies to ensure we are ready for whatever might happen."

According to Brown, a retired fire chief and first responder, the two-day training will include:

Emergency Management (EM) Considerations;

Implications for Planning and Response;

Functional Access Needs Considerations;

Mass Sheltering;

Pediatric Triage and Allocation of Scarce Resources;

Pediatric Reunification Considerations; and,

Pediatric Decontamination Considerations. 

For more information please contact Phil Ulibarri, Communications Manager at (775) 328-2414 or PUlibarri@washoecounty.us.