White Plains Hospital’s emergency department staff took part in an eight-hour disaster training course to prepare for mass casualty situations.

Upon completion, clinicians should have a better understanding of how to effectively handle patients and coordinate medical practices in a time of crisis.

“This is so vital. As a result of this training we will be better prepared than ever before at responding, whether it's to a small, medium or large scale kind of disaster,” said Dr. Robert Amler of School of Health Sciences and Practices.

News 12 is told the drill was an eye-opening experience complete with difficult choices and lessons.

A course trainee shared, “You don't want to walk away from a patient when you have to, but you have to be able to be comfortable walking away to potentially see the new assessment of a patient.”

One thing they can all agree on is it’s better to be prepared than to not be when it comes to unexpected large scale catastrophes.