PREPARING FOR STORM HARPER

At Bassett Hospital, ‘Virtual

Command’ Center Activated

Dialysis Patients Brought In Today,

MDs, Staff On Alert, Generators Tested

COOPERSTOWN – Bassett Healthcare Network has established a “virtual command” that will be on alert throughout Storm Harper to minimize impact on patient care in all five of its hospitals – Cooperstown, Oneonta, O’Connor in Delhi, Cobleskill and Little Falls.

“We have been  working to assure we are fully staffed throughout the storm’s duration,” said Brinton Muller, Bassett director of emergency preparedness.  “This is occurring at each of the five hospitals … as well as community-based health centers. We are making arrangements for staff and practitioners who may find it difficult to travel because of the storm to have lodging nearby.”

Oneonta, Cooperstown, Herkimer dialysis centers have contacted patients scheduled for the weekend to get them in ahead of the storm today and tomorrow morning, Muller continued.  If they can’t get in, personnel have gone over emergency-care measures with them, which includes using special medications they have on hand and nutritional recommendations, he said.

Facilities and maintenance crews are staffed up for plowing and clearing sidewalks, and generators have been tested in all Bassett Healthcare hospitals and nursing homes in case power is interrupted.

The “virtual command center will keep the Incident Command Team and Muller “activated and monitoring network operations to assure emergency response as needed until the situation is cleared,” he said.