Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital takes part in statewide medical drill

This is just a drill! At 7:57 a.m. Thursday morning staff at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital got the message via emergency text. The scenario was a male patient showing symptoms of Ebola.

“He was in close contact with his cousin who was fresh off the plane from an Ebola-affected area in West Africa, and both of them were sick and exhibiting systems consistent with Ebola,” said RN and clinical manager Jeremy Hadland.

This was all part of a statewide medical health exercise. The theme this year is ‘Emerging Infectious Disease,’ and Monterey County focused on Ebola.

“There’s hundreds of people in the United States being monitored that can still travel because they’re low risk. We could have someone arrive here in Monterey who’s being monitored in another jurisdiction and become sick while they’re visiting Monterey County,” said County Health Officer Dr. Edward Moreno.

That’s why Moreno said it’s good to always be prepared.

Meanwhile at SVMH the drill continued, putting hospital staff in full crisis mode. Hospital leaders quickly met at the incident command center, the brains of the operation. The key players who enter the room receive a vest indicating what their role is, and communication is crucial.

“Some of the top priorities we discuss right here in the command center are patient safety and coordinating the resources, and making sure those resources get to the right place at the right time,” said Hadland.

While health experts said the risk of an Ebola case in Monterey County is low, they need to know how to handle any situation – just in case.