Medical Monitoring and Responder Rehabilitation

Purpose:

To provide medical monitoring and responder rehabilitation at all major incidents (real and training) where emergency personnel may be at high risk of heat-related and / or stress-rel= ated injuries.

Objectives:

To k= eep all emergency personnel well hydrated and rested to minimize the occurrence of heat-related and / or stress-related injuries.

To provide ongoing medical monitoring for early identification of emergency personnel who show signs and symptoms of heat-related and / or stress-related illnesses.

To immediately identify and treat any potentially serious medical conditions detected during initial or ongoing medical monitoring.

To treat any traumatic injuries.

To triage personnel, after medical monito= ring and rehabilitation, with one of the following dispositions:

Returned to duty – adequately rehabilitated and medically fit for duty;
Removed from duty – evidence of an illness or injury; or
Transported to an appropriate medical facility for further evaluation and treatmen= t.

Medical Monitor= ing / Rehabilitation Group (or Unit)

The Incident Commander will appoint a Med= ical Monitoring / Rehabilitation Group (or Unit) at major incidents where emerge= ncy responders are exposed to conditions that would make th= e them highly susceptible to heat-related and / or stress-related injuries. This decision should be made withi= n the first 10 minutes of an incident.

The Medical Monitoring / Rehabilitation G= roup (or Unit) shall be responsible for:

Establishing a rehab area
Coordinating additional resources as needed including ambulances and/or medical personnel from rescue squads and other medical agencies
Supervising the flow of personnel into and out of the rehab sector
Making final decision as to disposition of personnel within the rehab sector.=

Rehabilitation = Area

The rehabilitation area shall be establis= hed outside the “hot” zone and in close proximity to the SCBA refilling operation (if applicable). It will be designated as a single = entry area to allow the Medical Monitoring / Rehabilitation Group Supervisor (or = Unit Leader) to monitor the flow of personnel.

Rehabilitation = Area Entry Guidelines

The following guidelines shall apply to t= he Rehabilitation Area:

Personnel will enter and exit the Rehabilitation Area as a company (when applicable). Exceptions = will be made based on medical monitoring and will be decided by the Medical Monitoring / Rehabilitation Group Supervisor (or Unit Leader) on a case-by-case basis.
SCBA, helmets, and turnout coats will be left in a designated area outside t= he Rehabilitation Area.
Entry will be logged and personnel tracked from entry into the rehab sector until the time they are released from the Rehabilitation Area, using t= he Medical Monitoring / Rehabilitation Tracking Form (Attachment 1)<= /o:p>

Rehabilitation Area Monitoring Guidelines

Upon entry into rehabilitation, after a 5 minute period to acclimate, all personnel will be evaluated for:=

Injuries
Illness
Blood pressure
Heart rate
Oral temperature

Based on the assessment, personnel will f= all into one of four categories:

Immediate transport to a hospital
Medical treatment
Rest and refreshment
Removed from duty

Catawba County Emergency Medical Services System
Medical Monitoring / Rehabilitat= ion Tracking Form

Incident Name:_________________________________________________________________ Date: ________= ____

Name	Time	BP	Pulse	<= span style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Resp	Temp	Skin	Checked By=	Complaint<= /p>	Disposition

Catawba County Emergency Medical Services System
Medical Monitoring / Rehabilitat= ion Tracking Form

Incident Name:___________________________________________________ Date: ______________________

Crew	# of Personnel=	Time In	Time Out	Destination

Medical Monitor= ing / Rehabilitation Group (or Unit)

Rehabilitation = Area

Rehabilitation = Area Entry Guidelines

Rehabilitation Area Monitoring Guidelines

Catawba County Emergency Medical Services System