More needs to be done in preparing for mass casualty incidents involving children, doctor says

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Training for mass casualty incidents is constant for first responders and hospitals but more needs to be done to address incidents involving school-aged children.

The National Pediatric Readiness Project found only 47% of Emergency Rooms have disaster plans that address children’s needs but that number is slowly improving. In 2021, another assessment found it was 69.5%. The ideal score is 87.

Here in Las Vegas, Dr. Deborah Kuhls, a trauma surgeon and Chief of Trauma at UMC, said more can be done to prepare. “We contribute a lot to readiness, but we feel that there is still a lot of work to be done.”

She also leads Nevada for the Western Regional Alliance for Pediatric Emergency Management. “We need to make training available for people who don’t take care of children on an everyday basis but they can be instrumental in saving a child’s life,” Kuhls said.

Government agencies, hospitals and other organizations have monthly meetings to go over plans in case the worst happens. Dr. Kuhls is working on developing more training that can be shared with the community.

UMC has the only pediatric trauma center in the valley and it requires higher standards than most. It’s something that helps in preparing for disasters.

In 2019, the Pediatric Disaster Care Centers of Excellence was created to help create disaster plans to care for children. It’s helping, Kuhls said, but the funding is in jeopardy. She is trying to bring awareness and readiness to keep people safe.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said much progress has been made in pediatric care during large-scale crises but there are still large gaps in disaster readiness.

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