About Us

Hospital Preparedness Council of North Texas
(HPCNTX)

Regional Medical Operations Center (RMOC)

ALL HAZARD RESPONSE

Since 2003, the TSA-C Hospital Planning Group and the Hospital Preparedness Council of North Texas – TSA-C (HPCNTX) mission is to be an organization which serves our participating HRSA hospitals. We do this by being a catalyst, supporting hospitals in their day-to-day operations, and being their forum for addressing common interests and issues in a collaborative manner.

Our shared vision is a metroplex that has the very highest standard of quality patient care as a result of hospitals working together and with their physicians and the community.

The HPCNTX is a 501c(3) not-for profit trade organization governed by an eleven-member Board of Trustees that consists of hospital-based executive administrative officers, chief operating officers elected annually by the voting members. The HPCNTX Board is authorized by the by-laws the discretion of selecting two additional ex-officio members to serve on the Board for a one-year term. An ex-officio appointee can be reappointed any number of times. The Board exercises this option primarily when an individual possesses knowledge of an issue the Board deems important.

Since January 2003 the Hospital Preparedness Council of North Texas TSA-C was formed to assist hospitals to be better prepared to respond to disasters. These disasters are outlined as hospital based; all-hazards and bioterrorism response. The need for information, guidance and support was the foundation for the creation of the Hospital Preparedness Council of North Texas. The re-organization effort that was completed in 2005 the program is now more responsive to the need of our hospitals and the community at large. While involved in the Bioterrorism Hospital Preparedness Program, the Hospital Planning Group has developed and adopted; a Regional Hazardous Vulnerability Assessment, Regional Medical Operations Center and a Major Disaster Response Plan all in use today. Regional standard operating procedures were put into action for responses to 2005 hurricane responses of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and the Wildfires that devastated Texas in 2006. With more proactive participation of our local, county and regional response partners at all levels has resulted in a better resource sharing and cooperation with among all agencies and hospitals.

Responses provided for;

· Hurricane Katrina and Rita which was a coordinated regional response in support of the state and national response August 2005

· Straight line winds/ tornado response April 2006

Advisory Level Activations;

· Wildfires which caused the evacuation of a member hospital January 2006

· Hazmat diesel spill in Wichita Falls June 2005

· Many Weather Related standby activations 2004/2005/2006 Storm Seasons

Exercises;

· Terrorism Response Exercise Full Scale May 2004

· Weather Related Tabletop September 2003

· Hazardous Materials Incident October 2004

· Weather Related Functional April 2005

· Terrorism/Incident Command Tabletop June 2005

· TEEX Hurricane Tabletop February 2006

· City/County hurricane full scale April 2006

· TEEX Terrorism/Communications Interoperability Tabletop March 2007

· TEEX Terrorism/Communications Interoperability Functional April 2007

Since the response to the two major hurricanes in August 2005, the Hospital Preparedness Council of North Texas has worked to incorporate evacuation and mass fatalities into its planning efforts. Evacuation of a facility was tested during a wildfire outbreak in 2005 and continues to be foremost working group in the planning efforts of the region. Understanding that evacuation can come as a result of many different disasters, member hospitals are encouraged to determine alternate care sites and evacuation plans in advance of a disaster.

The Hospital Preparedness Council of North Texas has formed a very cooperative agreement with the Wichita Falls-Wichita County Public Health District and Texas Department of State Health Services, Health Service Region 2/3 in Arlington. Since September 2001 the members of Public Health serve key positions in the Regional Medical Operations Center as a collaborative partner in the Emergency Support Function (ESF-8) along with the Hospital Preparedness Council of North Texas. Our group is actively involved in the planning and decision making in key issues during times of planning, exercising, response, recovery and mitigation. The local and regional Emergency Management departments are also involved in the Hospital Planning Group and assist us in coordination of disaster response efforts and inclusion in decision on drills, communications and key response issued as it relates to healthcare. A Hospital Planning Group member serves on the Homeland Security Advisory Board under the direction of the Council of Governments in Sub 5a District Disaster Committee. Representation is also made to the Local Emergency Planning Commission which involves all response partners and private industry to support a coordinated planning and response to local and regional emergencies. The Hospital Planning Group has members from Texas Department of State Health Services Mental Health and Mental Retardation. Local mental health officials, who include both state and private facilities, occupy both voting and non-voting chairs in the Hospital Planning Group. Additionally, membership is also extended to the Regional Liaison Officer for Sub 5a, the Texas Department of State Health Services, Local public and private first responders, fire and members from Sheppard Air Force Base. The make up of the Hospital Planning Group is so that we can include key personnel from all departments so that planning efforts are done in coordination and not duplicated.

Since September 2005 the Hospital Planning Group serves as the Emergency Support Function (ESF-8) Chair of the Disaster District in Sub 5a. Additionally, membership to the Local Emergency Planning Commission, Homeland Security Advisory Board and Texas Department of State Health Services to ensure that member hospitals are involved in the planning and collaboration through out the region. The Regional Medical Operations Center works closely with all response partners including the Medical Control Center located at Sheppard Air Force Base. Coordination with the Medical Control Center has proven to be a most valuable asset bringing a vast knowledge base to the region while strengthening the partnership with our military counterparts.

Since September 2001, the hospitals in the Trauma Service Area C have begun coordination of exercises so that all the hospitals in the region are taking the same approach to response and planning efforts. Facilitating Tabletop, Functional and Full Scale Exercises. Drills are conducted using the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program which complies with applicable rules and regulations.

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