Hamilton EMS participates in infectious disease preparedness exercise

Published 12:01 am Thursday, January 9, 2020

Hamilton Emergency Medical Services recently participated in Operation Wesley, a Federal Emergency Management Agency/Health and Human Services Region IV full-scale exercise which focused on health care facilities’ and fire and EMS services’ preparedness and ability to identify and manage significant infectious diseases.

Georgia and several other southeastern states tested their preparedness and ability to respond to a specific pathogen. The pathogen for Operation Wesley was Ebola. The exercise tested plans for patient identification, transport, surveillance, notification protocols and other interagency communications. Several fire and EMS services, hospitals and outpatient clinics participated.

The exercise was cosponsored by the Georgia Department of Public Health, the University of Georgia Institute for Disaster Management and the Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary of Preparedness and Response. The exercise included partners in Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Additionally, Illinois and Virginia partners participated in simulation during inter-regional movement scenarios.