Hospital staff to undergo major incident training

Hull Hospitals tested their emergency response procedures during Operation Orange Falcon in 2017

Hospital staff in Hull are set to take part in a major incident training exercise to test their response to a chemical incident.

On Saturday Hull Royal Infirmary staff including emergency department doctors, nurses, porters and managers will respond to a simulated incident as if it were real.

Under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, organisations which are classed as Category 1 responders, including acute hospital trusts, must test their major incident response plans regularly, and carry out a live exercise at least once every three years.

The exercise will run throughout Saturday morning, during which time an NHS spokesperson said patients and visitors to the site may see "some unusual activity".

Shaun Stacey, group chief delivery officer for NHS Humber Health Partnership said: "Livex Virgo will take place at Hull Royal Infirmary throughout the morning of Saturday 18 May, and will see staff across various departments respond to a simulated chemical incident.

"We can’t share too much information ahead of the event, as it’s vital that those taking part respond as they would in a real life situation, but the whole idea is to test the plans and procedures we have now to see if they work and identify where any changes may need to be made."

Mr Stacey said the exercise would not affect any routine appointments and Hull Royal Infirmary's Emergency Department and Urgent Treatment Centre would remain open.

Volunteers will be positioned at key locations across the hospital site to reassure visitors and ensure patients arriving are able to access their appointments or other form of medical care as normal.

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