North Texas health leaders have spent more than a year preparing for the FIFA World Cup, which starts this month. Arlington is hosting nine matches during one of the largest sporting events in the world.

Regional Planning Efforts

Hospital and public health officials said what they’re doing hasn’t changed much – but how they do it has. Courtney Edwards, director of a team at Parkland Hospital, said her team tends to focus on natural disasters and other emergencies that are more common.

Parkland is a World Cup “designated facility,” meaning it will receive patients if there’s a mass casualty event or something that requires trauma-level care on the east side of the Metroplex during the tournament. Edwards has attended monthly meetings for about a year and a half with other leaders from hospitals, public health departments, emergency medical service providers, law enforcement, and local governments.

Public Health Concerns

Dr. Phillip Huang, director of Dallas County Health and Human Services, said the influx of people coming for the World Cup presents a challenge for public health. His team has to handle a lot more work – without additional funding. DCHHS has increased disease monitoring efforts to make its system quicker and more effective.

Huang’s department is also responsible for contact tracing, disease prevention, education, and outreach – which can be complicated by the World Cup. Public health officials have to share information in a wider range of languages and quickly identify infectious disease concerns.

Lasting Effects

Courtney Edwards with Parkland Health said the work may benefit North Texas on a grander scale. She hopes to continue to use the partnerships formed over the past year to strengthen the emergency health care system moving forward.

Original reporting: Fort Worth Report — read the source article.