HR223 HD1

WHEREAS, the State of Hawaii has the responsibility of protecting and serving its communities by providing appropriate medical services during an emergency in a timely manner; and

WHEREAS, the significance of this responsibility has been demonstrated repeatedly during Hawaii's hurricane seasons, earthquakes, flash floods, tsunamis, sudden horrific tragedies such as the Sacred Falls landslide, the collision and sinking of the Ehime Maru sea vessel, and evacuations of schools due to hazardous materials conditions; and

WHEREAS, a mobile emergency hospital unit can respond to crisis situations and provide instant on-site medical attention ranging from emergency medical care, surgical trauma, critical care, and anesthesia; and

WHEREAS, a mobile emergency hospital unit can serve as a "surge hospital," designed to respond to surges in numbers of patients during emergencies, or as a stand-alone quarantine facility capable of providing 14 general medical beds and expandable to accommodate as many as several hundred patients when a tenting system is in place; and

WHEREAS, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, more than 7,000 patients were served by a mobile emergency hospital unit set up in a parking lot in Waveland, Mississippi, for seven weeks when the existing local health care infrastructure was destroyed; and

WHEREAS, a mobile emergency hospital unit served as a major trauma center and emergency room in New Orleans during the 2006 Mardi Gras when the existing medical infrastructure was in bad repair; and

WHEREAS, a mobile emergency hospital unit can also serve as a quarantine facility in the event of a hazardous materials attack, pandemic, avian flu outbreak, or any disaster-related outbreak requiring quarantine; and

WHEREAS, in addition to serving as a medical resource during emergencies and disasters, a mobile emergency hospital unit can also provide primary care and necessary healthcare infrastructure to communities lacking medical resources in parts of the islands where needs have already been identified, including Kahuku, Puna, and other areas; and

WHEREAS, as a mobile emergency department and hospital on wheels, such a unit should also be able to be transported to various sites and may also be airlifted between islands via military transport airplanes; and

WHEREAS, a mobile emergency hospital unit could provide a mobile support trailer stocked with essential medical supplies and equipment, as well as living and sleeping quarters for a team of healthcare providers that can travel with the unit; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii's isolation as a chain of islands requires sufficient and immediate emergency medical response from within the state until support from the mainland or elsewhere arrives; and

WHEREAS, a mobile emergency hospital unit would afford the people of Hawaii immediate access to medical resources during a natural or man-made disaster; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2007, that the Civil Defense Division of the Department of Defense (Civil Defense), in cooperation with the Department of Health (DOH), is requested to begin necessary preparations to establish a mobile emergency hospital mobile emergency hospital unit in Hawaii as a shared resource between Civil Defense and DOH, based on the known need for a comprehensive natural and man-made disaster response plan; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Civil Defense, in cooperation with DOH, is requested to submit a report to the Legislature no later than 20 days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2008, on the cost and logistics of providing a mobile emergency hospital unit for the State of Hawaii, including any recommendations and implementing legislation; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Defense is requested to provide a report to the Legislature no later than 20 days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2008, with information regarding the possible role the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, a congressionally ratified organization that provides form and structure to interstate mutual aid, could play in assisting Hawaii in times of emergency; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Director of Civil Defense, Director of Health, and Adjutant General.

Report Title:

Mobile Emergency Hospital Unit Preparations

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	223
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII