Believed To Be First In Nation, Jackson Health System Unveils Mobile Triage Unit
MIAMI (CBSMiami) - Jackson Health System unveiled a mobile triage unit that is believed to be the first of its kind in the nation on Thursday.
The unit will help doctors and nurses at JMH isolate and treat patients with infectious diseases, like COVID-19.
"We wanted to build something that would be robust and hold up through time, with the hope that it is never used," send Cliff Hokanson, whose company HHI Corporation invented and donated the unit.
The unit is a set of seven shipping containers which include a nursing unit and 11 patient beds. The triage unit also has specialized airflow to help prevent the spread of disease.
The mobile triage unit can withstand hurricane-force winds and temperatures up to 120 degrees.
Hokanson said the idea to turn shipping containers into a mobile triage unit came about amid the coronavirus pandemic, which overwhelmed some hospitals struggling to isolate COVID-19 patients and transform floors into Intensive Care Units.
"Having this mobile unit available in the event of another surge will give us a huge advantage," said Don Steigman, the Chief Operating Officer for Jackson Health System.
HHI teamed up with the law firm Reed Smith LLP and the Global Surgical and Medical Support Group who then teamed up with Jackson Health System to bring the one-of-a-kind unit to South Florida.
The unit arrived from Utah on August 26 and was assembled in a matter of three days.
"What we wanted to do was provide hope for the patients," said Hokanson.
