About AIMS
General Overview
The Alabama Incident Management System (AIMS) allows and encourages ongoing, real-time communication between health facilities(Hospitals, Nursing homes, Community health centers, medical needs shelters, and EMS providers) and State Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs), tracking staff, facilities and supplies in times of normalcy and for distribution in times of stress.
Using AIMS’s web-based interface, data server and instant messaging, individual health facilities will report the status of their health care facility directly to the server, which instantly directs that information to the EOC in an easy to read graphical analysis.
AIMS consists of three main components: The health facilities within a health care planning region, county EOCs, and the AIMS server. Under normal conditions, health facilities will inform AIMS, and inherently EOCs, of the current status of resources and staff. When conditions stress the surge capacity of area health facilities, AIMS and EOC staff will negotiate the use of those resources so health facilities and health care personnel can meet the needs of the community in an efficient and orderly manner. Normally, this process can be seen as three stages of information flow.
First, using the web-based interface, each facility’s administrator will input pertinent data concerning such things as available burn units, supplies and staff on duty. Facility administrators can gather this information using the current HEICS hierarchy. AIMS’s intuitive interface will guide information input using specially designed drop down menus and form fields. Each facility will relay such information to the AIMS server at regular intervals.
At the server, the AIMS program instantly compiles that raw data into easily interpreted graphs, specific to each hospital within the health care planning region. For instance, local health facilities will be depicted with a field and each field will contain bars to represent various resources. So, burn units or biohazard equipment would be displayed by a vertical bar against a numerical Y axis.
Upon compilation, the information is directed to the local EOC for use when local surge capacities are threatened. This will allow each local EOC to discern exactly how many burn units, biohazard suits, and blood units are available continuously and at a glance.
When natural disaster or man-made catastrophe strikes, the EOC will be prepared with vital information about resources within their health care planning regions, allowing rapid response with the right resources. Rather than the mayhem that could ensue during a mass casualty event, local EOCs will coordinate these resources with local health facilities, emergency medical personnel and emergency response teams. During an emergency, liaison officers at each participating hospital can update their resource status at regular intervals, providing their EOC with a clear picture of regional resources.
How it Works
The AIMS System Administrator sets up the system at all area health facilities, at the EOC and at the AIMS server. Each location will be set up specific to its purpose.
At the Facilities & Providers
Each facility will have a designated machine for communication with the EOC. Using the web-based interface, a facility's administrator will log into AIMS and customize the resource list according to that facility's resources. Once configured, the resources are represented by click list menus and drop down menus. Specific information about the facility's equipment and supplies will be configured into the system and immediately available at the EOC.
The AIMS System modules include:
- The AIMS System Administrator Module allows for initial set up of all system wide available resources, as well as making changes in available resources.
- The Facility Administrator Module allows each facility to establish its own inventory according to specific facility resources.
- The Liaison Officer Module allows frequent and quick data input of available resources and/or changes in resources during an emergency.
- The Incident Management Module or EOC Module displays the collective graphical and specific information of all the participating health facilities in the region.
