Remembering 9-11
This week marks the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the United States. It was an eye-opening experience for all Americans – and life would never be quite the same. And it certainly changed the way health care providers prepare for emergencies. For many health care workers, it was an event that they train for and hope never happens. On the clear, beautiful fall morning of September 11th 2001, I was making final preparations for an emergency preparedness exercise MCHC was coordinating for Chicagoland hospitals. I received a call right after the first plane hit the World Trade Center tower and in an instant, all preparations for the day’s disaster drill halted and the lessons from years of training and “practice” took over. At that point in time, when no one knew where the next attack would be, hospitals geared up for mass casualties. When the minutes turned to hours and Chicago was spared an attack, the hospitals still stood ready to help their colleagues in New York and Washington DC – ready to receive patients transferred to Chicago or send supplies and/or medical personnel to help out. Sadly, a large number of the victims died. Ultimately, the health care systems in New York and DC were able to manage the number of people with injuries.
While the events of that clear, fall day served as a wake-up call for the entire country, it deeply impacted the health care community as well. Hospitals are a critical resource for the nation, especially in times of crisis. While emergency preparedness is an issue that was taken very seriously by hospitals, 9-11 served as an impetus to heighten the level of preparedness within hospitals. After 9-11, the Federal government provided states and large urban areas with funding to strengthen the capabilities of hospitals and health care systems to respond to public health emergencies and medical disasters. With that funding, hospitals were able to dedicate more resources to emergency preparedness, to be ready for whatever the future may bring; a biological emergency (we reaped the benefits of our planning during the H1N1 pandemic), natural disaster (who can forget Hurricane Katrina or the blizzard here last February), chemical emergency (such as the massive oil spill in the Gulf), a radiological emergency (like the one cause by earthquakes in Japan), an explosion or other event that causes mass casualties. Incidents like this occur regularly around the world.
Unfortunately, ten years after that fateful day in September, our country is in a recession, which means hospitals are facing massive budget cuts. Budget cuts jeopardize hospital preparedness for the cataclysmic event we hope never comes as well as other emergencies and medical disasters. While September 11th changed history, an important lesson it has taught us is that emergency preparedness is a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year responsibility. Let’s hope that this anniversary will raise awareness about the importance of the medical community in our lives and in the nation’s preparedness. It would be unimaginable if we as a nation didn’t do all that we could to be equipped for what the future holds.
Do you remember where you were and what you were doing on 9-11? Share your story with us.
