During the week of May 12, Chicago and the rest of the state will be under siege as part of an imaginary bioterrorist attack involving a deadly virus. This federally run bioterrorism preparedness exercise is called TOPOFF 2 and will involve Children's Memorial Hospital in Lincoln Park. TOPOFF stands for Top Official.
"This drill is meant to test the city's infrastructure such as the 911 system, the Chicago Department of Public Health and trauma centers like Children's Memorial," said public affairs director Julie Pesch. "It also is a learning experience to see how prepared we are to respond to smallpox or the bubonic plague."
TOPOFF 2 follows a simulated disaster drill that occurred three years ago in Denver in which there was a fake release of the pneumonic plague. TOPOFF 2 is headed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the State Department and also will test the city of Seattle.
Hospitals such as Children's Memorial will be receiving patients and patients on paper ?????exhibiting signs of a virus. Then the health care workers will have to act as investigators tracking down what disease the patients have and how to react to the exposure.
The Chicago Department of Public Health is looking for 500 people to "act" as patients receiving counseling and prescriptions at an emergency dispensing clinic at the now closed Near North Career Magnet High school, 1450 N. Larrabee St.
"All of this is just make-believe but we need to practice so if there ever is such an attack we'll know what to do," said Pesch. "Children's Memorial wants to make sure residents know that if they see a lot of unusual activity during the week of May 12 not to worry, it's just a drill."
If you would like to volunteer as a patient for the Chicago Department of Public Health, call Mike Robbins at (312) 746-6222.
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