Mass shooting in Colorado: practice drills, disaster preparations key to successful emergency response.

While EDs are accustomed to preparing for mass-casualty events, the EDs responsible for caring for the victims of the mass shooting at an Aurora, CO, movie theater on July 20, 2012, say the emotional impact of dealing with such a senseless, horrific event remains challenging. Still, the ED directors from the two hospitals who cared for the most patients that night credit established disaster-response procedures and regular practice drills with helping them to successfully manage the crisis. Within a 30-minute time period, the University of Colorado's Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, CO, received 23 critically ill or injured patients, one of which was deceased upon arrival.There were no additional fatalities among the remaining 22 patients. The Medical Center of Aurora received 18 patients, 13 of which where suffering from gun shot wounds; all survived. Hospital administrators say ED providers and staff have responded in different ways to the tragedy, but the emotional impact has been difficult for some. Resources, ranging from spiritual support and grief counselors to psychiatric help, have been made available to help ED personnel access the kind of help they need.