Berwick Hospital Case Study

To: John Wilkesboro, Chief Operating Officer, Berwick Hospital System

From: Po Hattan, Chief Continuity Manager, Berwick Hospital System

Re: Continuity plans for operations and associated risks relating to catastrophic disruption due to environmental causes

Date: January 27, 2007

A medical center with over 500 beds located in an urban area provided the majority of charity service in the city, although it was known for quality patient care. The staff valued this reputation, had pride in the physical facilities, and placed value on education. The hospital placed great value on innovative boundary-spanning activities, community outreach and marketing, and enjoyed "comfortable" staffing levels and large investments in technology. Unfortunately, when struck by a severe flood in the region the hospital did not utilize its “adequate” disaster recovery plan, but fell back on a “learn as we go” mentality. The result: while the medical center suffered no internal damage, it sustained severe alterations in its patient services and care delivery. It faced critical staffing shortages, and was forced to cope with a lack of easily accessible potable water for almost three weeks. (1) As this and other medical facilities throughout the U.S. and the world have discovered, it is one thing to simply have an emergency plan on file with authorities and an entirely different matter to adequately plan, practice, and successfully implement an effective disaster recovery/continuity plan.

Maintaining continuity of operations at Berwick Hospital is of critical importance in the face of an environmental catastrophe. Successfully coping with a disaster, whether natural, man-made, or terrorist attack, incorporates several key elements. The National Incident Management System (NIMS) published by the Department of Homeland Security in March, 2004, describes several key elements of emergency preparedness.

According to NIMS publications, effective emergency management begins with a host of preparedness activities conducted on what is described as a “steady-state” basis, well in advance of any potential incident. NIMS documents state that preparedness involves a combination of planning, training, exercises, personnel qualification and certification standards, equipment acquisition with corresponding certification standards, and publication management processes and activities. (2)

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) describes emergency management as “the process of preparing for, mitigating, responding to, and recovering from an emergency.”(4) The old adage still holds true that those who fail to plan, plan to fail. However, while preparation (or planning) is a critical component to the overall management process, it is not the only component. It is just as important for an emergency management plan to educate and train personnel on how to respond in an emergency situation, and to follow up that training with extensive practice through regular drills.

Berwick Hospital System would be well-served to create and implement a formalized continuity plan which takes into account an environmental catastrophe for several reasons. First,