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Avail™ Medical announced the launch of their Emergency Response Program. This Program provides Emergency Medical Service and Disaster Preparedness providers with the guaranteed on-site usage of the Avail Emergency Response Center (ERC) during a large-scale emergency or disaster. The Program also provides mandatory training and disaster drill facilities meeting Homeland Security trauma surge capacity requirements. The Program is ground-breaking in that it provides assurances for towns throughout the U.S. well within the allowed funding from Homeland Security.

(PRWEB) August 30, 2005 -- Avail™ Medical, a global provider of transportable field hospitals today announced the launch of their Emergency Response Program (ERP). This Program provides Emergency Medical Service (EMS) providers with the guaranteed on-site usage of the Avail Emergency Response Center (ERC) during a large-scale emergency or disaster for a fraction of the cost of ownership.

“The Program is unique because it provides communities with the security that appropriate medical facilities will be available in the case of a major disaster such as an earthquake, hurricane, tornado, flood, or terrorist attack without over-burdening the local EMS providers’ budgets. After the 9/11 attacks the Office of Homeland Security has been specific in identifying the requirements for supporting a surge in trauma cases during the hours, days, and weeks following a disaster. Our Program allows EMS providers to meet those physical requirements for less than $200,000 per year,” said Anita Chambers, Chief Strategic Officer of Avail Medical.

For $150,000 the Basic Plan guarantees that Avail Medical will deliver one of their patented Emergency Response Centers to the requested disaster site within a maximum of 24 hours after the request has been received. Depending on the exact location of the disaster and the availability of roadways into the disaster area, the ERC could be in place and accepting trauma patients within less than three hours. Additional plan options include the availability of the ERC for on-site training and drills performed throughout the year in preparation for an actual disaster event. Should such an event occur, the Program participants may request the support of additional Emergency Response Centers at the disaster site.

The Avail Emergency Response Center is a 1000 square foot state-of-the-art medical facility housed in an expandable 53-foot long tractor trailer. Because the compressed size and fully-loaded weight meet Federal Department of Transportation requirements, the ERC can be transported over U.S. roadways directly to the disaster site or closest medical facility without special permits. Inside the ERC, trauma patients can be triaged, diagnosed, treated, and even receive surgery inside an Operating Room that would be the envy of many in major medical centers. In cases of extreme emergency, up to three surgeries can be performed simultaneously in the positively pressurized, 99% HEPA filtration environment.

“If you can do it in an ER or trauma center, you can most likely do it in the Avail Emergency Response Center,” said Steven Rudy, MD, Medical Director of Avail Medical. “The ERC is basically a Trauma Center on wheels,” said Malinda Mitchell, consultant and recently retired CEO of Stanford Medical Center in Palo Alto, CA. The Avail ERC meets the stringent equipment requirements of a designated Trauma Center as defined by the American College of Surgeons (ACS). These ACS definitions have been adopted by most states as their own requirements for the designation of trauma center capability.

“We designed the Emergency Response Program after several municipalities contacted us for information on purchasing our Field Hospital in order to meet trauma surge capacity requirements,” said Jeffrey Merino, CEO of Avail Medical. “With each inquiry the situation was the same – they wanted the unit, but just could not afford it. We saw this situation several times and knew we had to do something to help these EMS Teams better provide their vital service to the community. That was the genesis of the Emergency Response Program. It meets their needs and the Homeland Security requirements without breaking their budget,” Merino said.

The Avail Emergency Response Program is being launched at the 2005 Annual Conference of the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) held August 28 – 31, 2005 in Anchorage, AK. NEMA is dedicated to enhancing public safety by improving the nation’s ability to prepare for, respond to and recover from all emergencies, disasters, and threats to our nation’s security. The non-profit organization began in 1974 when state directors of emergency services first united in order to exchange information on common emergency management issues that threatened their constituencies. Since that time, NEMA has grown and captured the attention of the President, Congress, Governors, federal agencies, major corporations, the military and other government representative organizations. The state directors of emergency management are the core membership of NEMA. Membership categories also exist for key state staff, homeland security advisors, federal agencies, nonprofit organizations, private sector companies and concerned individuals.

About Avail™ Medical
Avail Medical is a California corporation formed in 2004 and holds the only issued U.S. patents for a mobile operating room. The company specializes in the design, development, manufacture, and distribution of rapid deployment field hospitals that include state-of-the-art operating room facilities. The product can be utilized by hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers experiencing over capacity (census) issues or undergoing Operating Room retrofits; humanitarian and military organizations providing medical care in remote areas of the world; and emergency medical and disaster preparedness organizations. To date, virtually every type of surgery with the exception of open heart and complex neurosurgery has been performed in the patented Field Hospital. It meets DOT requirements for standard transportation over US roads; it can also be transported via military aircraft such as the C-5A or C-17. Existing Field Hospitals built under this design have successfully been used at hospitals, correctional institutions, governmental facilities, ambulatory surgery centers, and in field situations.

Media Contact:
Anita Chambers
Chief Strategic Officer
Avail Medical, Inc.
1525 State Street
Suite 105
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
650-823-3014 (direct)

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Source :  http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/8/prweb277979.htm