Cyber Attack Drills
Recent cyber attacks against well established business around the nation has caused concern for those on whom an attack could be catastrophic. That is why last week PeaceHealth network including Peace Harbor Medical Center conducted cyber attack drills on our local hospital and system wide. Shaina Hogan is a member of the IT team based out of Vancouver that assisted in conducting the drills. She says three years ago at a California based health system they were made aware of the potential problems.
“We were hearing from the inside just the chaos that ensued and our leaders at the system office here asked us, ‘are we ready, if PeaceHealth were hit by a cyber attack, are we ready to safely care for our patients?’”
It was a question that could not fully be answered without a test. A cyber attack means that all records, order writing, surgery prep and payroll for those who continue to work would be affected. Ruth Franke, Chief Nursing Officer with Peace Harbor said it meant a re-education in old school practices. She says they left no scenario out.
“Where do we keep these paper charts? How do we educate our caregivers to fill them out? Looking at those gaps so that it’s clear that education needs to be set up in a way that will be fun and interactive but also great learning for them.”
Franke said that the drill was a success and that the team conducting the drills were highly impressed with the response from the Peace Harbor staff.
Firework Rules
Two different wildfires that happened in Lane County in 2021 prompted the Lane County Board of Commissioners that year to pass an ordinance banning the use of all fireworks when the State Forester declares “fire season” to be in effect. Devon Ashbridge with Lane County says the Sweet Creek Fire near Mapleton and the devastating Holiday Farm Fire that year were what prompted the restriction.
“A recognition on our community of the harm that can be caused by wildfire and the understanding that even though the Holiday Farm Fire was not caused by fireworks, in general the vast majority of fires that do are human caused.”
This is the first year since enactment that fire season was declared before the Fourth of July, so officials want to ensure everyone is aware the ban is in place. It applies only to unincorporated areas and does not apply inside incorporated city limits of Florence or Dunes City. Other than areas in and around Old Town, there are no restrictions in Florence or in Dunes City. She says residents who act in a lawful and safe manner are appreciated but, she asks:
“9-1-1 is really for those life safety emergencies or immediate threat to property. So, we encourage people to make any reports using the non-emergency numbers for their local law enforcement agencies.”
That way, she says, those calls can be routed and dispatched without slowing down true emergencies.
Fire Concerns
Man made fires are also a concern and with temperatures spiking around Oregon with temperatures reaching or exceeding 102 degrees just miles from Florence in Mapleton, fire crews are on standby. In a recent wildfire briefing, the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center said its immediate focus is the July Fourth holiday. Carol Connolly with the agency says they can’t prevent naturally occurring wildfires, but that isn’t always their biggest concern.
“Most of our fires in 2024 are human-caused. So, that’s why we’re really doing a big push to reduce the risk of starting those large, catastrophic fires that are preventable.”
The National Weather Service has Mapleton in an excessive heat warning beginning tomorrow through the weekend.