Exercise Overview

This exercise will serve as an opportunity for community, rural and tribal health care centers to asses their ability to remain operational in the aftermath of a commercial fire severely damaging their principal facility. The primary purpose of this exercise will be to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of each center's Continuity of Operations Plan .

Caduceus Shield Exercise Initiative

The Infirmary Inferno - A Health Care Center Tabletop Exercise is part of the national Caduceus Shield Exercise Initiative.

This exercise will be facilitated via an internet based application entitled ON-Line eXercise (ONX) System which will allow management and staff to participate in the exercise from their normal base of operation.

Information on the ONX System can be found at ONXSystem.com.

A discussion and information forum for all who are interested in, support or participate in the Caduceus Shield Exercise Initiative.

Join the Caduceus Shield Exercise Initiative LinkedIn group today.

Testimonials

Health care providers have been participating in ONX System exercises since May 2010. View what health care emergency managers and others are saying about using the ONX System.

US Department of Health and Human Services Policy

All Caduceus Shield exercises are designed to meet the requirements of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) - Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Policy Information Notices (PIN) # 2007-15 and 2007-16.

Homeland Security Exercise & Evaluation Program

Caduceus Shield utilizes the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP) system for exercise design, facilitation and evaluation.

HSEEP compliant Exercise Evaluation Guides (EEG) are utilized to assess the various planning / preparedness, response and recovery capabilities and capacity of health care centers participating in all Caduceus Shield exercises.

After Action Report / Improvement Plan - Inject Response Report

An HSEEP compliant After Action Report / Improvement Plan (AAR / IP) is generated at the conclusion of all Caduceus Shield exercises. This report is based on an exercise specific Exercise Evaluation Guide and the observations and recommendations of an on-site evaluator. Each health care center will need to provide an internal evaluator for the exercise.

In addition all responses to injects and descriptions of actions taken by exercise participants during a Caduceus Shield exercise are captured within the ONX System and exported to generate an Inject Response Report at the conclusion of the exercise.

Exercise Scenario

At 10:37PM on Sunday a motorist driving past your health care center's primary location notices smoke coming from a vent on the top of the building. Using his cell phone the motorist calls 9-1-1 to report a fire.

Within several minutes of notification the fire department has arrived. Upon sizing up the scene and establishing an Incident Command firefighters begin to battle the conflagration that is consuming your building.

Because the fire is proving more difficult to extinguish than originally thought, the Incident Commander asked for additional resources. A second alarm is sounded and the supplementary firefighters and equipment arrive. It takes another 21 minutes before the fire is extinguished.

At 7:49AM on Monday the first arriving staff members are shocked to see that their workplace has been severely damaged. They stand in the parking lot waiting for someone to give them direction as to what they should do.

Exercise Participation Information