Quake Jolts Officials to Prepare for Disaster

On Jan. 18, an article appeared in the Los Angeles Times concerning the establishment of emergency treatment stations in Calabasas. There were several misstatements attributed to Dr. Arnold Bresky that I would like to clarify.

Dr. Bresky is quoted as saying that in the time following the Northridge earthquake, West Hills Regional Medical Center was not working or able to function effectively. This is totally erroneous.

More than 300 patients were treated after the earthquake on Jan. 17, 1994, in the Emergency Department at West Hills Regional Medical Center. Understandably there were some delays, but no one waited nine hours to be seen. In addition, the emergency generator power came on immediately after the quake occurred and remained on until normal electrical service was restored. Thankfully few patients had life-threatening conditions, but all patients were cared for by a dedicated staff of physicians and hospital personnel who performed with great expertise and compassion.

West Hills Regional Hospital’s employees and physicians participate in regular disaster drills several times throughout the year. In fact, West Hills Regional Medical Center was singled out by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals, from the 5,300 facilities that it surveys, to be ranked in the top 5% of hospitals in the United States. This ranking, in effect, gives a gold star to the hospital’s medical care.

It is true that had the earthquake occurred at 4 p.m. instead of 4:30 a.m. every emergency department in the San Fernando Valley would have been overwhelmed with critically injured patients. We must all participate in the establishment of emergency stations, like the ones being developed in Calabasas, since they are a valuable component in the development of disaster preparation.

ALAN L. KUBAN

West Hills

Kuban is director of the emergency department, West Hills Regional Medical Center.