| Topic: |
Science > Prophecies-Of-Nostradamus |
| User: |
"=?utf-8?B?4pi74pmm4pmj4pmg4oCi4peY4peL4peZ?=" |
| Date: |
26 Apr 2007 09:45:22 PM |
| Object: |
The old Frickability Scale...................... |
From the Age newspaper website (Melbourne):
http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Terror-attack-may-overwhelm-hospitals/2007/04/27/1177459943220.html
Terror attack 'may overwhelm hospitals'
April 27, 2007 - 12:15PM
Australia's health care system could be overwhelmed by a terror
attack, a new study warns, with hospitals unable to handle a deluge of
seriously injured patients.
A paper released on Friday by the Australian Strategic Policy
Institute (ASPI) said there had never been realistic testing of the
health system to see just how it could cope.
Paper authors ASPI research director Dr Anthony Bergin and ASPI
research fellow Raspal Khosa said there were many reasons to be proud
of the national health system.
"There must, however, remain considerable doubt about its capacity to
deliver critical care to large numbers of people in a catastrophic
disaster," they said.
"In a mass casualty event our health care system could be overwhelmed.
But we can't be certain."
According to the report, senior health planners believe Australia
could cope with an incident comparable to the 2004 Madrid train
bombing which resulted in 191 dead and 2050 injured, 80 critically.
Australia has had limited experience of mass casualty incidents. The
last within Australia was the 1977 Granville train disaster in Sydney
which left 83 dead and 213 injured.
Some of the 2002 Bali bombing casualties were treated at Australian
hospitals, but they arrived 23 hours later, allowing ample time for
preparation.
Even so, 62 Bali victims took up all Australia's adult burns treatment
beds.
In a terror attack, the burden of dealing with casualties would
inevitably fall on the state-run health systems, the study says.
In 2004-05 Australia had 759 public and 534 private hospitals, but
only 88 had top level emergency departments, mostly located in capital
and regional cities.
ASPI said most hospital services were overstretched on a daily basis.
A recent study published in the Medical Journal of Australia surveyed
the number of operating theatres, X-ray machines and intensive care
beds in major Sydney metropolitan hospitals and their ability to cope
with a patient surge.
That concluded that up to 81 per cent of critically injured patients
could be denied immediate access to an operating theatre while up to
69 per cent could be denied immediate access to intensive care bed.
ASPI said a first step could be convening of a national summit to
discuss all aspects of healthcare preparedness followed by creation of
a national crisis centre, amalgamating around 30 operations centres
located around Canberra.
It proposed a national audit of all health assets likely to be needed
in a mass casualty incident and creation of national standards,
specifying just what hospitals should be able to cope with so they can
plan accordingly.
ASPI said the lives of dozens of victims would hang in the balance in
the immediate aftermath of an attack.
"This period - the golden hour - is when many of the critically
injured may be saved," it said.
To do that, patients could be triaged (assessed) at the incident scene
and only those requiring treatment sent to hospitals.
"The Australian government should consider providing funding to
upgrade inadequate existing central business district healthcare
facilities in our largest cities for them to function effectively as
disaster triage hospitals," ASPI said.
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