News
Training Exercises Held at Meritus Medical Center
For Immediate Release –
For More Information, Please Contact – Joelle Butler, Media@MeritusHealth.com
HAGERSTOWN – Meritus Medical Center was the site of two planned training exercises on Friday, Aug. 16, for protocols in the event of an active shooter on the hospital’s campus and the no-notice medical surge of patients that would follow.
The hospital and numerous community partners – including the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, the Division of Emergency Services, Maryland State Police and the Hagerstown Police Department – have been planning the exercises for the past five months. Social media messages were posted at 8 a.m. Friday by all of the partner agencies to alert media and the public that the event was only a drill and that the Meritus Medical Center/Robinwood Professional Center campus was still open for business.
“The safety of our employees, patients and visitors to the hospital campus has always been a top priority and drills like today’s are vital to keep staff educated and trained on emergency procedures,” says Katie Salesky, emergency management specialist for Meritus Health. “Coordinated exercises like this allow us to test our processes and staff response and practice maintaining our continuity of operations, so we can continue to provide quality care during an emergency.”
The two exercises lasted approximately two and a half hours in total.
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