Somewhere in Texas | 7 May 2012 Reducing shortages of critical medicines while enhancing National Disaster Readiness and much more. Virtually every healthcare organization in America that uses anesthesia drugs, pain medicines and a host of other critical medical items is aware that America has been experiencing persistent shortages of these items. This is...
Jim Rush
Last call: The healthcare supply chain vulnerability [by Jim Rush]
Salado, Texas–During the financial crisis of 2008, the federal government printed money to stabilize our economy. In a future large-scale disaster or catastrophic event, no amount of money will purchase critical medical supplies and pharmaceuticals that do not exist. When a sudden very large spike in demand for medical materials occurs, we will either...
Jim Rush: Employing Wounded Warriors and other Veterans for Healthcare Disaster Readiness
At the precise time American healthcare and public health response systems need to be made deeper and more disaster-resilient, large numbers of Veterans with exceptional training in medicine, public health, deployable medical facilities and a host of support functions are looking for jobs and a way to continue serving America. Recent disasters have clearly...
Jim Rush: Writing Measurable Target Capabilities
Jim Rush, Salado, Texas, April 20th, 2011 In the GAO report GAO-11-260 (Measuring Disaster Preparedness, March 17, 2011) said….. “In summary. DHS and FEMA have implemented a number of efforts with the goal of measuring preparedness by assessing capabilities and addressing related challenges, but success has been limited.” Perhaps the reason the Target Capabilities...
Jim Rush: Disasters Only Happen To Others
–With the 8.9 Japan earthquake, America is once again thinking about Disaster Readiness, but I fear this is just a temporary phenomenon. If our past is any indicator, instead of using this tragedy as an opportunity to become truly prepared for disasters, we will once again relapse into a state of complacency. For...
Rush: Have we learned the lessons of the 2005 hurricane season?
Have we learned the lessons of the 2005 hurricane season? On the 5th anniversary of hurricanes Katrina & Rita, I think it is helpful to read the stories and first-hand reports from the various New Orleans shelters including the Superdome during the hours and days after hurricane Katrina. It is important to learn from...
Jim Rush on The Perfect Disaster Storm: Wrong capabilities, wrong approach and wrong mindset
Salado TX–As bad as the Gulf Coast oil spill is and as profound its effect will be on the environment, wildlife, the economy, and the lives and livelihoods of Gulf States residents, I believe it is just a preview of a much worse, human disaster to come. General Accountability Office (GAO) reports consistently point...
Rush: Is it time for the United States to unify emergency management? “The Community Rapid Recovery Program”
Salado TX–The Haitian humanitarian catastrophe has shown that countless numbers of good people are willing to sacrifice their time and efforts and put their own health on the line to save lives and reduce suffering. Unfortunately, except for the US Navy’s hospital ship “Comfort”, the US medical response to the Haitian earthquake recovery has...
Jim Rush: Why the President’s Executive Order re Medical Countermeasures is bad medicine
Salado TX–The President’s Executive Order http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/executive-order-medical-countermeasures-following-a-biological-attack on medical countermeasures is an example where the President has been given terrible advice. This executive order tasks HHS, DHS and the US Postal Service to develop the “national U.S. Postal Service model,” of distributing medical countermeasures to the American people during a biological attack. The idea is...
Jim Rush: Why emergency managers need to answer the call to be terror-ready
Salado TX–The Christmas Day terrorist attempt to bring down another airliner refreshes our collective recognition that terrorist organizations are still at war with the United States and still devoted to killing innocent citizens. Once again, we see how difficult it is to identify a person as a threat before an event, even though we...
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