A Metropolitan Airport Disaster Plan—Coordination of a Multihospital Response to Provide On-site Resuscitation and Stabilization before Evacuation

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Abstract
At the John F. Kennedy International Airport [JFK] in New York City [USA], disaster planning has been an integral part of the airport operations for the past 20 yr. The medical component of this disaster planning has focused around the Medical Office at JFK. Through this office, on-site emergency medical teams have been established and trained from all ranks of airport personnel. Following the crash of a Boeing 727 aircraft in 1975, a new concept was added to disaster planning for JFK, which involves bringing the hospital, its facilities and its personnel to the scene. A new piece of equipment, known as an Emergency Mobile Hospital, was developed with the cooperation of the airlines, the operating authority of the airport and other interested parties. Two such vehicles are now in constant readiness at the airport and together provide 2 operating rooms, 12 monitored intensive care beds, a 16 bed burn unit and 72 other beds to be used for on-site stabilization of critically ill patients, before transfer to a definitive care facility. Under the auspices of a single area medical school (New York Medical College) and its affiliated departments of surgery, trauma teams are made available to be airlifted to the scene within 30 min of notification. Additional medical teams from other medical school hospitals serve as backup support. The principle of bringing the hospital to the emergency, and of assembling trauma teams for the initial phase, remains the same for JFK as for that of any other metropolitan airport.

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