Dressed in space-age like moon suits—covered from head to toe—members of Upland Hills Health staff recently conducted decontamination drill and training exercises.

From constructing the decontamination chamber to learning the specifics on handling contaminated garments and the proper/safe method of cleansing victims, the team goes through the painstaking process and procedures in detail.

The Upland Hills Health team sweats it out through the summer temps, knowing that the more efficiently and effectively decontamination can be accomplished, the quicker a victim can be treated. This thorough prep work is needed before a contaminated patient can enter the hospital environment for treatment of their injuries.

“With our proximity to Highway 151 and the use of chemicals by local farmers it is imperative that Upland Hills Health be ready to respond to a contamination situation,” stated Carol Ann Kruel, RN Emergency Services Director.

Operations-level training, initial and refresher training was provided to emergency room, respiratory therapy, housekeeping, plant operations, and house supervisory personnel. New this year, awareness level education was provided to reception personnel –training them to recognize and respond to walk-in contamination events. In total, 58 Upland Hills Health employees received training.

The Portable Decontamination Chamber is quickly set up.	Water hoses and patient conveyer are assembled and put into place within the chamber.
Staff proceeds with the cleansing process once the contaminated clothing is removed.