uit 5 Discussion Board 2 Homeland secuirity
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Trident University International *
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509
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Medicine
Date
Dec 6, 2023
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docx
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Uploaded by Dr.Sprague
Considering the Boston bombing was one of the deadliest IED style attacks to ever happen in the United
States there is a lesion to be learned from the events of that day. The two suspects were able to build
homemade devises using simple methods and items easily purchased at any store in the country. On a
day were thousands of law enforcement and EMS personnel were supposedly prepared for anything
More than 260 people were injured in the bombings, but there were only three fatalities.
The overall response of the Boston EMS, National Guard and Police to the incident clearly prevented the
loss of more people. Doctors and medical professionals attributed the well-coordinated response to lives
being saved. So what went right? Medical personnel were able to get the first patient into the operating
room within roughly 45 minutes after the blast. Well within the golden hour which is the timeline and
golden rule when dealing with trauma cases. The city had five level I trauma centers located within a few
square miles of the blasts which allowed for quick access to follow up trauma care. The amount of
hospitals within a short distance made the equal distribution of critically ill patients, the abundance of
skilled medical personnel more effective ensuring that not one medical center was over loaded with
patients. This distribution of patients allowed for better treatment of patients and their injuries.
The fact that physicians and EMS were present at the marathon or volunteering made triage more
effective. The fact that Boston had invested in communication across the ems and health care
communities after 911 proves that the city was more prepared than many of our cities are for the same
kind of threat. Boston EMS invested in coordinated communications, ensuring that pretty much every
hospital in the Boston metro area had radio and secondary hard lines that enabled them to
communicate immediately with first responders at the scene of a disaster (Neil Osterweil).
Considering the communication between law enforcement, EMS and the medical centers after the
bombing the city was able to ensure that hospitals were able to call in more staff in order to treat the
wounded. The response to the incident was grade A however there was areas which could be improved
such as searching all bags coming into the areas of the viewing of the marathon. There was EOD and
Swat however there was not enough done to search bags or restrict the items which would be allowed in
the marathon area. The fact that Boston has spent a significant amount of money on CCTV was another
strong area because it gave commanders access to footage of the blasts and made the identification of
suspects much quicker than it would have been without those systems in place.
The area which would need improvement is that the city needs to create a command center or JTOC
were one call 24/7 it’s staffed with fire, EMS, Disaster Management and has access to the CCTV systems
throughout the city. This capability could have possibly given the assets on the ground the ability to react
to suspicious persons or items faster. Another added benefit is that the command center can
communicate with the area hospitals as soon as the event takes place to place them on alert for
incoming trauma patients . Lastly the pre-determined medical tents which were placed throughout the
marathon route was a significant help in treating injuries quickly. The planners need to develop a system
which prevents large backpacks or bags from entering the race area and having more than one line of
security between the race and the outer perimeter.
References:
Neil Osterweil, 2015. World Class Emergency Response in Boston Marathon Bombing
American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) 2015 Scientific Assembly. Presented October 26, 2015.
Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency et al. (2014). After Action Report for the Response to
the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings. Retrieved from http://www.mass.gov/eopss/docs/mema/after-
action-report-for-the-response-to-the-2013-boston-marathon-bombings.pdf
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