Wisconsin Interoperable System for Communications (WISCOM)
 

The Wisconsin Interoperable System for Communications (WISCOM) system serves as a means of redundant communication for Wisconsin’s seven healthcare emergency readiness coalitions (HERCs) with hospitals, partners, and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) during major disaster events and large-scale incident responses. It is vital to maintain these communications in the event of a disruption in normal communication practices, typically by land line or cellphone.

For the system to be truly redundant, as required by the Emergency Management accreditation standards, it is recommended that the WISCOM radio:

• Be powered by a source that will not be impacted by loss of power to the hospital’s primary power supply.

• Be left on your designated regional talk group (listed below) to support inter and intra-regional emergency response communications between hospitals.

• Be located in the emergency department, whenever possible.

It should be made a priority to train your organization’s staff on how to operate the WISCOM radio to achieve these communications.