It was all hands on deck Jan. 20, as The Nebraska Medical Center’s emergency department was a beehive of activity as a result of the industrial accident at the International Nutrition plant.
The med center received four patients who were involved in the collapse and one paramedic. One patient had a collapsed lung, another suffered from hypothermia, the third complained of shortness of breath and the fourth incurred minor injuries. The paramedic had a laceration.
Two of the patients were released later that day; the others required overnight stays.
P.J. Schenarts, M.D., trauma medical director, addressed members of the media later that day. He also was on hand when the first patients arrived and was called to the scene of the accident later in the day.
Four patients were brought by ambulance from International Nutrition, located at 7706 I Plaza in Omaha.
The entire organization stepped up to assist as details of the incident started to evolve. On a day with a full house already, inpatient staff and physicians promptly worked on dismissals to make beds available. The OR team and surgeons held elective surgeries not yet in progress until information was available. Support services geared up. Surgeons (trauma, orthopaedics, and neurosurgery), ED physicians and nursing staff placed on standby responded to the ER. The media team met TV stations out front and kept everyone informed.
“It is always a pride-filled moment to know that you could have cared for hundreds, but a comforting reality to know that today it would only be five who needed us,” said Shelly Schwedhelm, director of emergency, trauma and disaster services.
The trauma team here is phenomenal! Although my son's injuries were unsurvivable, Maddie's and Carly's could have been, but because of the great care of the trauma team here at TNMC, they not only survived, but are both back in school full-time this semester. Given the severity of their injuries, that fact alone, speaks volumes to the care they received here. Their accident could have easily resulted in three funerals, but by the grace of God and the extradorinary care, it did not.