Beginning January 1, 2016, the New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) Watch Command will transmit a series of messages via the NYC Hospital Emergency Radio Network for any event the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) deems a 10-60 (major response event). Transmission of these messages—a pilot program that NYCEM has committed to for one year—is a feature being added to the existing Hospital Emergency Radio Program. Watch Command transmissions will be one-way communications, so hospitals should NOT respond to the communication to acknowledge receipt or ask additional questions. This pilot program has no impact on the current FDNY notification protocols used to communicate with hospitals in close vicinity to an emergency incident. Those protocols remain the same.
The purpose of this document is to help NYC hospitals think through adjustments to their internal procedures that the pilot program may warrant.