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Red Cross to host disaster conference
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SAVANNAH — The Savannah Chapter of the American Red Cross will host a conference on “Caring During Disasters, Pandemics, and Other Extreme Conditions” on May 1 at Armstrong Atlantic State University.  

The daylong conference will addresses disaster preparedness and response issues likely to emerge in the event of a pandemic or other disaster, and to encourage partnership among the various professions and agencies involved in public safety, security and survival.

Presentations and concurrent sessions will be led by nationally recognized specialists in disaster medicine and emergency preparedness and response.

Kristine M. Gebbie, acting dean of the Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing in New York, is an expert in emergency preparedness and workforce development. She will be presenting the American Nurses Association’s newly revised standards of care under extreme conditions.

James Geiling, chief of the medical service and director of the Intensive Care Unit at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in White River Junction, Vt., served as military medical task force commander for the Pentagon disaster of 9/11. He will address the challenges of securing and managing emergency equipment and personnel before and during a mass care operation.

Roy Howard, deputy chief of the Garden City Fire Department, is a veteran of search and rescue operations in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and after the Imperial Sugar explosion, which occurred in his county in 2008. He will speak about disaster preparedness and response from his perspective as a first responder.

The conference is targeted toward health care providers, law enforcement, firefighters, EMS personnel, hospital administrators, Red Cross volunteers, civil preparedness officials, emergency managers, and anyone else with a professional or personal interest in disaster preparedness.

Additional information is available on the conference Web site, www.caringconference.com, or from conference chair Carmen A. Young, RN, MPH at CareConference@gmail.com.