Field Work Emergency Response Plan

The purpose of this document is to outline procedures for staff to follow in the event of an emergency while conducing field work.

Background

Our staff often conducts ecological research in remote locations. Many work locations do not have cellular phone coverage. Field crews often travel many miles on unimproved roads and then hike several miles into the backcountry to reach sample sites. Thus, sample sites are commonly located several hours away from definitive medical care. Additionally, search and rescue operations may not be able to obtain access to patients in backcountry settings for several hours or days due to inclement weather, road conditions, or inaccurate information regarding the patient’s location.

Preparedness

Our permanent staff possesses current training (Wilderness First Aid, Wilderness First Responder) and carry the proper equipment required to manage common injuries and illnesses in remote settings. Additionally, our staff conducting field work must carry a Garmin inReach device properly set with NAMC emergency contacts.

Wilderness first aid training prepares crew members to care for a patient suffering from a variety of symptoms for up to a few days in a backcountry setting. The training does not cover advanced life support techniques beyond CPR and rescue breathing, and crew members will generally not be prepared to care for a patient with a severe medical condition for any length of time. The inReach device allows crews to notify staff if the field crew encounters any troubles while outside of cellular reception areas. The inReach device also allows crews to initiate an emergency response.

Procedural Overview

The emergency management procedures in this document are sorted by personnel and incident severity. Separate procedure sets are provided for field crew members and managers overseeing field staff. Additionally, separate procedures were established for both emergency and non-emergency situations.

An emergency is defined as an injury or illness that threatens life or limb. A non-emergency is defined as an injury or illness which prevents self-evacuation to definitive care. Note that a non- emergency can rapidly become an emergency following prolonged exposure to environmental elements and delayed access to definitive care

Procedures for Field Crew Members

Emergency

If a crew member is in immediate danger to life or limb, follow these steps in order:

  1. If phone has cell service, call 911
    1. After coordinating with 911 dispatch, call the field crew manager. If one cannot reach the field crew manager, continue placing calls working through our listed contacts until reaching one.
  2. If there is no cell service, turn on the inReach, and push the SOS button. Leave the inReach on.
  3. Provide care for the patient.
    1. Depending on location, help make take several hours to arrive. Make sure to have enough water, food, clothing, and shelter to stay safe and comfortable. If it is late in the day, prepare to spend the night.
    2. If there is need and one crew member can return to the truck for more supplies, first do the best to make patient comfortable, then mark the patient’s location with the GPS, and take the inReach on return to truck. One can use flagging to mark the trail from the patient to the truck.
      1. At the truck, check to see if there is cell service and if so, call 911.
      2. Before leaving the truck, leave a visible note regarding patient’s location and any other important information.
  4. Once safely back in civilization, contact the field crew manager for a patient update.
    1. In the unusual event of a life or death situation and you have not been able to contact any managers, you may call the patient’s emergency contact and inform them of the situation.

Non-emergency

In the event that a crew member has an injury or illness that requires medical attention but that is not threatening to life or limb, follow the steps below:

  1. Provide care for the patient and determine the severity of the injury. Assess whether or not the patient can get to the truck with help (i.e. the patient is “ambulatory”).
    1. If the patient is ambulatory: Proceed to the truck and transport patient to the nearest hospital. Call the field crew manager while in route once a cell signal is obtained.
    2. If the patient is non-ambulatory:
      1. If there is cell service, call the field crew manager
      2. If there is no cell service, turn on the inReach, and contact NAMC Field Manager with custom text message.
      3. After coordinating with the field crew manager or using the inReach, make sure basic needs are met. Depending on location, help make take several hours to arrive. Make sure there is enough water, food, clothing, and shelter to stay safe. If it is late in the day, prepare to spend the night.
  2. If one needs to return to the truck for more supplies, first make the patient comfortable, then mark the patient’s location with the GPS, and take the inReach on return trip. If necessary, use flagging to mark your trail from the patient to the truck.
  3. After reaching a hospital or clinic, be sure to inform the care givers that this injury will be a workman’s compensation claim.

Calling Tree for Field Crew

In the event of an incident, place calls in the following order:

  1. Emergency – 911
  2. Field Crew Manager – Andrew Caudillo
  3. Project Manager – Trip Armstrong
  4. NAMC Director – Chuck Hawkins

Procedures for Field Crew Managers

Emergency

If manager received a SOS from an inReach device, the emergency response system should have already been activated and an emergency dispatcher should contact NAMC right away. In this scenario follow the steps below in order:

  1. Wait to be contacted by a dispatcher for no longer than 30 minutes of receiving an SOS message.
    1. If no one listed in the inReach contacts receives a call within 30 minutes, initiate contact by calling 911 or dispatch center closest to the crew’s last known location (see list below).
  2. Coordinate with the dispatcher to develop a rescue plan. Be prepared to provide:
    1. A description of the crew members and the vehicle that they are driving. Be sure to mention any medical conditions that you know the crew members have.
    2. The crew’s last known location and, if available, directions on how to access that point.
  3. Once the rescue operation is underway, call the patient’s emergency contact.

Other times to activate the emergency response system: Field crew managers will activate the emergency response system if a crew has failed to check-in with their inReach two times in a row, or upon receiving a HELP message from a crew’s inReach device.

  1. Attempt to contact the crew by phone.
  2. Attempt to contact the crew by text message to inReach.
  3. If one is not successful at contacting them, activate the emergency response system by contacting the dispatch center closest to the crew’s last known location (see list below).
  4. Coordinate with the dispatchers to develop a rescue plan. Be prepared to provide:
    1. A description of the crew members and the vehicle that they are driving. Be sure to mention any medical conditions that you know the crew members have.
    2. If a HELP message was received: The crew’s last known location and, if available, directions on how to access that point.
    3. If an inReach signal was not received: Provide the dispatcher with information regarding the crew’s last known location, which direction they might have traveled from that location, whether they would have traveled from that location on foot or by car, and any known directions on how they may have accessed that location.
  5. Once the rescue operation is underway, call the patient’s emergency contact and the other management staff to inform them of the situation.
  6. Await updates from the incident commander or dispatcher assigned to the rescue and follow the situation until it is resolved.
  7. Make arrangements to have the patient and fellow crew member transported back to Logan.
  8. Contact the University’s workman’s compensation insurer to determine how to proceed with processing a claim.
  9. Consider leading a critical situation debrief, and/or group and individual counseling sessions.

 

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