Preparations are moving into high gear for countries hosting the upcoming Men’s T-20 Cricket World Cup series in June.
The Barbados Defence Force Field Medical Team (BDF FMT) and regional partners staged a simulation exercise recently, which focused on a stand at the cricket ground collapsing and resulting in a number of injuries.
Doctors, nurses, orderlies, and administrative staff were pressed into action to treat a range of injuries, such as compound fractures; lacerations about the body including hands, neck, and feet; loss of memory; and consciousness. The medical team was also confronted with some infectious disease cases.
The simulation came on the final day of the Emergency Medical Teams and Mass Casualty Management training courses, which ran from March 16 to 24.
Speaking during the recent closing ceremony, Executive Officer of the BDF FMT, Lieutenant (Coast Guard) Anderson Goodridge, explained that for just over a week, local and regional participants took part in intense training exercises, where they learnt about the triage process, communication strategies, the roles and responsibilities for an effective coordinated response, and how to erect and dismantle the various types of tents.
He urged the participants to carry forward the knowledge, skills, and friendships gained to begin a new chapter of cooperation, and team building as they worked to safeguard our region.
Executive Director of the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), Dr. Joy St. John, also encouraged participants to share their knowledge and techniques with their colleagues when they return to their various countries.
“Many of these practices are applicable for the larger international meetings that this region is hosting before the end of June 2024,” Dr. St. John said.
This view was supported by Director of the Pan-American Health Organization’s (PAHO) Subregional Programme Coordination Office, Dean Chambliss, who noted that the training marked a significant advancement in the ability of the BDF FMT to provide critical medical support in times of peace and crisis.
“The BDF has demonstrated resilience, innovation, and a steadfast determination to enhance their capacity to respond effectively to an emergency. Large scale mass gatherings, such as sporting events, pose health risks due to the dense congregation of people. It is within this context that we see the need for meticulous risk-based planning and preparation.
“The Caribbean sub-region now has a pool of human resources reinvigorated and well qualified to support the operationalisation of the Field Medical Hospital in the event of mass casualty for an emergency event,” Mr. Chambliss said.
Members of the BDF FMT, staff from CARPHA, and volunteers from St. Lucia, Antigua and Barbuda, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Guyana took part in the training.
The training was supported by the BDF FMT, PAHO, and CARPHA, and funded through the European Union’s 11th EDF Programme of Support for Health Security Strengthening for Prevention and Control of Outbreaks of Communicable Diseases in the Caribbean.