Possible Impacts Of Severe Weather On Coronavirus (COVID-19) Triage Hospitals

A network, made up of 11 hospitals in the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metro areas, have come together in the fight against COVID-19. However, the battle isn’t just with the virus.

The fight includes supplies, infrastructure, and Oklahoma’s severe weather.

Various hospitals have dozens of triage tents set-up outside their facilities as tornado season in Oklahoma is just around the corner.

Hospital administrators said they are hoping for the best, but preparing for an emergency response.

They are preaching a message of social distancing while on the hospital campus, and keeping a vigilant eye on weather radar.

The facilities are also all learning from each other.

"If temps drop below 45 degrees or severe weather/lighting is within 8 miles of outdoor medical operations, we will move operations inside. We have portable weather monitoring equipment at each location to ensure we stay on top of potential weather.”

--Integris

“Norman Regional Health System uses advanced weather technology that has protected our patients, physicians, and employees for years. We have access to WeatherOps by DTN which utilizes a lightning proximity ring 20 miles in every direction from our three main campuses in Norman and Moore. Severe weather events are monitored in real time 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If lightning or severe weather is moving into this warning ring, our team responds.

The items within the triage care sites at Norman Regional can relocate and are portable. In the event of severe weather our healers and patients relocate to a safer location within the facilities. Any patient that is in isolation, such as a patient confirmed or suspected to have COVID-19, would be taken to a safe area without other patients in that designated room."

--Norman Regional

"Our facilities have specific protocols to follow anytime severe weather is imminent that are designed to help keep safe everyone on our campuses at that time. Taking into account additional risk factors associated with COVID-19, SSM Health St. Anthony recently rolled out an updated severe weather policy for our facilities that addresses social distancing. We would also like to remind members of the community that we cannot function as public shelters during severe weather for the safety of our patients, employees and the community.”

-- SSM Health St. Anthony

OU Medical Center is grateful to have skilled workers in its ranks.

“We have Rowdy Anthony, who has a background in military as a healthcare leader. During the Gulf War, he helped set-up several emergency mass-units to related to operating rooms, full hospitals and did those in very short time periods,” said Kris Gose, President of OU Medical Center. “We have a couple of options, one of those is to immediately move patients within the emergency department. We have an area that is set-up with airflow for the COVID positive, or COVID-potential patients to be moved in.”

If the wind, hail, or rain leaves lasting damage, there is a plan for that too.

“We have a temporary alternate location at the ambulatory surgery center, that we have a block south of us that we could mobilize a quick emergency department,” said Gose.

Just like the weather, plans can evolve and change daily.

Hospitals said they are committed to keep staff and patients out of harm’s way.