Journal of Pediatric Care

Targeted strategies to protect children and their healthcare providers against mass violence

Background:  Children are frequently victims both intentionally and as collateral damage in mass shootings, gang violence, and global conflict.  Increasingly, hospitals, previously considered inviolate, have also been targeted.  Their personnel also.  Examination of these incidents at our institution led to the development of educational strategies to improve the survivability of these innocent victims.

Methodology:  Over the course of five years, educational initiatives were developed, evaluated, and taught at our academic center to provide this training, not only to healthcare personnel and students, but also to vulnerable civilian populations both locally and across the country.  The initiatives include training in triage, tourniquet application (including improvisational), active shooter drills, emergency hospital evacuation, and active shooter “gaming.”

Results:  The types of educational activities over the course of five years and approximate number of attendess are listed:  Triage (200 multidisciplinary healthcare students and residents); Tourniquet skills (2500 multidisciplinary healthcare students, residents, law enforcement, faculty); Extramural tourniquet skills (30 under-privileged children in Arizona; 50 New York high school students; 50 children and families in Toledo health fairs and libraries); Active Shooter Exercises (500 healthcare students); Emergency Hospital Evacuation drills (300 healthcare students); Active Shooter gaming (70 healthcare students, pediatric residents, and nurses at a Pediatric Educational symposium).  Pre- and post-activity surveys revealed statistically significant satisfaction and competency scores in more than 95% of the attendees.

Author(s):

Paul Patrick Rega

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