Area hospitals finalizing plans for Democratic National Convention

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Medical teams and hospitals in the region are finalizing their plans for the Democratic National Convention.

Any time there is a big event in Philadelphia where a lot of visitors are expected, emergency management teams start planning well ahead of time.

Experts say the city will be ready.

As workers continue to set up the Wells Fargo Center for the Democratic National Convention, there are many other not so visible preparations also underway in the city.

Mark Ross represents hospitals in the region when it comes to emergency planning and response.

He says unlike the Papal visit, the DNC won't impact general healthcare, meaning it will be business as usual at local medical centers.

"We don't have to worry about road closures, access to a number of facilities. We won't see that level of disruption to healthcare," said Ross.

But some hospitals will beef up staff and have extra on call. First aid tents will also be set up outside the main attraction.

Like many other large city events, emergency crews are expected to be out in force.

Ross says the hospital association works closely with the city Office of Emergency Management, the fire department and police. All have been planning together for the DNC for months.

"So we know what's taking place. We're able to advise our hospitals and other healthcare facilities - what's happening and what they need to be prepared for," said Ross.

They also study the response on mass casualty tragedies, such as the shootings in Orlando and Dallas, and practice for scenarios that could happen here.

"We look at every single exercise and event and do an after action and what were our best practices, lessons learned, and we incorporate those," said Ross.

There are also plans in place if one of the VIP's needs medical attention.