Disasters are unpredictable in terms of their occurrence, nature, and damage. Natural and man-made disasters that endanger the nation's economy, population, and health. Disaster happens locally and we have to respond globally to minimize major threat related to health, life and livelihood. Strong preparedness, readiness, and responsiveness can limit negative effects. Thus, it speeds up responses, possibly saving lives and reducing severe costs during crises but not only locally but globally.
About Tabletop Exercise and Communication in Disaster Medicine ( TOPCOM)
Tabletop exercise is a focused, comprehensive exercise that has been effectively adopted by the various agencies of the international community. It is an activity in which key personnel assigned emergency management roles and responsibilities are gathered to discuss various simulated emergency situations in a non-threatening and stressless environment. It uses written and verbal scenarios to evaluate the effectiveness of a facility’s overall disaster plan and coordination. Members of the team review and discuss the actions they would take in a particular emergency, testing their emergency plan. Tabletop exercises are used to clarify roles and responsibilities and identify mitigation and preparedness needs. The exercise results in action plans for continued improvement of the emergency plan. There have been numbers of natural calamities and man-made disasters around the world, Nepal being vulnerable to disaster, there has been a growing need for professional, coordinated responses. Therefore, we envisioned the urgency for closer collaboration not only between the different agencies within Nepal but beyond—into the wider international community.
In 2019, Dhulikhel Hospital, Kathmandu University Hospital, was able to conduct KU-TOPCOM. Due to KU-TOPCOM, Dhulikhel Hospital effectively managed similar emergency preparedness training for approximately 1700 healthcare professionals ( doctors, nurses, hygiene staff, laundry staff, cashiers, pharmacists, admin staff, etc along with community members, local armies during the COVID pandemic. This training equipped the healthcare workers with the skills necessary to analyze the situation critically, manage the crisis with constrained resources, and minimise the unanticipated challenges to the greatest extent possible.
For the first time in Nepal, Dhulikhel Hospital Kathmandu University Hospital, and other affiliated university hospitals of Kathmandu University and major hospitals of Bagmati province are planning to conduct the World Academic Council of Emergency Medicine- Tabletop Exercise and Communication in Disaster Medicine (WACEM- TOPCOM) in collaboration with Hospital Selayang, Malaysia, the World Academic Congress of Emergency Medicine, and INDO-US Emergency and Trauma Collaborative (INDUSEM).