Collingwood General and Marine Hospital to conduct mock Code Orange exercise

There is no reason to worry if you see an unusual tent outside of the Collingwood General and Marine Hospital (CGMH) on Friday.

According to a release issued by the CGMH on Wednesday, the hospital, along with County of Simcoe EMS will be conducting a Code Orange mock exercise.

Hospital officials say a Code Orange is an external community or emergency situation that impacts the capacity of hospital services.

“For CGMH it means that the hospital will need to be prepared for an influx of patients with varying conditions and severity of injury, while at the same time maintaining regular service levels,” the release reads.

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In order to prepare for this type of incident, the hospital will be running a mock exercise.

On Friday morning, people acting as patients will arrive at the hospital and move through a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear tent which will be set up in the physician parking lot on the east side of the building.

Hospital officials say no part of the exercise will take place in the hospital and there will be no disruption to patient care or operations at CGMH during the training session.

“This exercise is an excellent opportunity for the organization to test its response time for a mass casualty event and work with community partners to provide a safe and effective response to the situation,” CGMH president and CEO, Norah Holder, said in the release. “It’s an excellent learning opportunity for all involved, should an emergency of this magnitude ever unfold.”