Since it arrived Nov.1 at Ocean Medical Center in Brick Township, HackensackUMC’s Mobile Emergency Satellite Department has seen more than 40 patients.
The MSED vehicles, a breakthrough in cutting-edge technology, are deployed to respond to affected communities’ emergency healthcare needs. They are one of only a few mobile hospitals of their kind in the nation, funded through a unique partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense.
The core of the mobile hospital complex exists in the form of a 43-foot semi truck with expandable sides, and are fully outfitted with seven critical care beds each having monitor-defibrillator capability; a portable digital X-ray unit; telemedicine capability; portable field laboratory; small pharmaceutical cache; overhead medical procedure lighting and onboard medical gases. They are rapidly deployable, fully-functional mobile emergency departments.
The Mobile Acute Care Hospital includes 13 vehicles featuring four semi trailers that can be assembled with fully enclosed connectors to form two – seven bed EDs, an ICU unit and a mobile operating room, all accompanied by the support vehicle. Typically, an initial deployment contains one MSED unit until a full assessment of need has been made.
In addition to the main MSED unit, HackensackUMC deployed six MSED support vehicles for communications, supplies and equipment. Seventeen members from HackensackUMC, including emergency physicians, nursing and operations personnel, and members of the EMS Task Force (through the New Jersey Department of Health) were onsite to staff the MSED. The organization’s helicopter, AirMed One, remained ready for deployment if air rescue during Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts was needed.
