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An invisible media type It's not often one can become invisible-- even more so when one is a member of the media. But Tuesday afternoon, I was, in fact, invisible. I stood in the halls of the Bennett Health Care Centre and watched the staff struggle to evacuate residents from the place while fire raged in one corridor. Okay, it wasn't a `real' fire, but a mock disaster to allow the staff an opportunity to deal with the stress, assess their emergency and hazard of herself. Her presence was to test the staff to see response plans, and most of all, learn how how they dealt with her over-zealous questo be ready to deal with the unknown. And I was invited to document the tioning. (At the debriefing, I noted that in event. The exercise was co-ordinated by a real-life situation, her behaviour would Neil Shepherd of Shepherd Solutions. Neil have landed her in the backseat of a police is not only an expert in conducting and cruiser within minutes.) She later played the part of a frantic assessing mock disasters, but he is also a daughter, searching for her `lost' mother, board member at the Bennett. The exercise involved 15 Christ the King violently trying to get past police, staff and high school students (posing as residents even Bennett Centre Administrator Mark Ewer, to reach her `mother' with various health consomewhere in the building. ditions) and additional For photos see page 9 Once all the `residents' Bennett residents and were safely removed from family members who their rooms, they gathered at the entrances volunteered to take part. Some of the `residents' had slight burns where staff administered triage, the process or injuries, some experienced confusion, of sorting injured people into groups based and a few were belligerent and difficult, as on their need for medical treatment. In a real situation, they would then be they might well be in a real emergency. The aim of the simulation was to test loaded on ambulances and removed to the staff, and allow them to evaluate how safety. During debriefing, Shepherd congratuthey reacted, and be able to fine tune their lated staff on a good drill with minimal procedures. "It's easy to sit around a table with a problems. Bennett Administrator Mark Ewer exbunch of people and discuss the procedures," said Shepherd in the debriefing, plained this was the first time the Bennett "But when you are in a simulated disaster, Centre has had an evacuation drill in five it feels like the `real deal' and is much easier years. "The Bennett Centre has fire drills on a to see where you can improve." monthly basis-- it's a requirement of the And more effective it was. I watched staffers sliding `residents' Ministry of Health," said Ewer. "But a mock down the halls, wrapped in blankets, as evacuation is much more effective in eduthey had been lifted from their beds. Slid- cating them to react in a real situation." I agree. Although I knew what to expect ing them on a blanket on the smooth floor is the fastest, most effective means of mov- by being apprised before the exercise, I could still feel the tension in the air. Staffing a person who is unable to walk. In addition, the mock disaster had ers were flushed, some were on edge, and emergency personnel and police officers on all had a major adrenaline rush. But that's a good thing. After all is said hand to add to the realism. They even enlisted Sheri Martincourt to and done, the Bennett Centre staff are cerpose as an obnoxious, in-your-face `jour- tainly a bit wiser, the procedures will likely nalist' who was asking the wrong questions be tweaked a little, and one major fact refrom the wrong people, getting in the way mains. 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