Months prior to last night's "code black" lockdown at Mercy Southwest Hospital, Adventist Health Bakersfield had planned an informative symposium to discuss the healthcare perspectives and lessons learned from the Las Vegas Route 91 Music Festival shooting in October 2017 and the Bakersfield Heart Hospital shooting incident in December 2017, Adventist Health Bakersfield said.

The symposium, "Coping with Chaos" will be held on Monday, August 13 from 9 a.m. to noon at the Business Development Center at CSUB. The event is free and open to the community and will have local healthcare representatives there for discussions and a Q&A following their presentation.

According to Adventist Health, Nason Van Houweling, the CEO of University Medical Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas, the hospital that treated most of the trauma patients; and Michelle Oxford, the CEO of the Bakersfield Heart Hospital, are among the guest speakers.

Adventist Health Bakersfield President, Sharlet Briggs said that hosting a symposium like this is a way for everyone to share lessons learned with crisis situations.

"It’s about working together in the healthcare community and with our teams of first-responders to be as prepared as possible, should the worst happen, Briggs said. "As we’ve seen right here in our own back yard – just as recently as last night at Mercy Southwest Hospital and last October (December) at the Bakersfield Heart Hospital – emergencies can occur, but they can also be handled in a way that reflects intentional preparation to keep our patients, visitors and community safe.”

The Bakersfield Heart Hospital shooting that Briggs referenced happened in December of 2017.