Tetanus shots real, bioterrorism a mock drill
Beth DeFalco
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The bioterrorism threat was a test, but the anxiety was real.
Some students squirmed, squealed and even fainted as nurses and
paramedics administered tetanus shots to more than 3,000 teenagers
Thursday at six high schools in this Phoenix suburb.
The idea behind the mass vaccination: practicing controlled chaos
in the event of a terrorist attack.
Students were treated as if they were being inoculated with an
antidote after an act of bioterrorism, said Mary Cameli, deputy
chief of the Mesa Fire Department.
The inoculation was one of two drills held here Thursday in
conjunction with a three-day bioterrorism conference and drill in
Tucson. The exercise will test how well health and emergency
officials and the military are prepared for a biological attack.
The needles in Mesa added an element of reality that other parts
of the drill won't have.
Sherry Lawson, a registered nurse with the Mohave County Health
Department, poked about 500 students at Mesa's Westwood High School.
"Does this hurt? You have to tell me," pleaded sophomore Ashley
Ramirez.
"This is for your own protection," Lawson answered.
Before Ramirez knew it, it was over. She stuck around a few more
seconds to hold a friend's shaky hand as the girl also received a
shot.
The students were required to get tetanus shots by January 2003
anyhow, said Mesa school district spokeswoman Judi Willis, but
weren't told of the bioterrorism drill.
"All the kids know is that they're getting a tetanus shot so they
won't be suspended," Willis said.
Parents signed approval forms in advance.
While most of the students received shots without incident, a few
cried and fainted.
Several officials from around the country observed the drill,
including state health officials from Maryland, Hawaii, and the
federal government.
"It's very rare to do an exercise where you actually administer
something, said Capt. Kathleen Downs, a public health adviser with
the U.S. Center of Excellence in Disaster Management and
Humanitarian Assistance.
While the fire department conducts annual dry run exercises in
Mesa - drills where people pretend to be immunized or hurt -
Thursday's mass inoculation was the first time officials actually
administered medicine in large quantity.
"There's a big difference when you use real people," Cameli said.
"You can easily see where the bottlenecks and holdups are so you can
improve next time."
Later Thursday, more than 200 Mesa volunteers posed as anthrax
victims. Each was evaluated by a pharmacist or other health worker
who determined what medications were appropriate for each patient.
Volunteers presented their medical histories and were given empty
pill bottles from a National Pharmaceutical Stockpile emergency
training package delivered via a secure helicopter from Tucson.
The same type of exercise will be attempted on Friday in Tucson
involving 1,000 volunteers playing victims.