Hospital set to take part in planned emergency exercise

Staff at Lynn’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital will be taking part in a planned training exercise to test their response in the event of a major incident.The NHS takes part in many simulated exercises to plan and evaluate how they would react in response to an emergency which helps them to prepare for such scenarios if they were to happen in real life.The exercise, which takes place on Tuesday, July 23, will involve staff volunteering as casualties and see emergency department doctors, nurses, porters and managers respond to a simulated incident as if it were real.

The hospital will remain open as usual and officials say that the exercise has been “carefully planned to have no impact on the delivery of emergency care or routine services such as outpatient clinics and appointments”.Simon Illingworth, chief operating officer at the QEH, said: “This exercise is routine for the NHS and forms part of our ongoing emergency preparedness plans.“We can’t share too much information in advance as it’s vital that those taking part respond as they would in a real-life situation. “The scenario chosen is neither likely nor imminent and is purely used to test the plans and procedures we have in place currently to see how well they work and identify where any changes may need to be made.“Patients and visitors visiting the hospital on Tuesday may notice some unusual activity but should not be alarmed or concerned.”Reporting by Olivia Lawson