MISSION: Fort Ward Amateur Radio Club/Fwarc mission for Healthcare Emergency Amateur Radio Team (HEART) is to provide emergency communications for participating healthcare facilities in the event of a catastrophic communications failure.

HOW WE DO IT: Each licensed, amateur radio operator is a trained and vetted volunteer of the healthcare facility to which they are assigned. (Healthcare facilities provide free training and more to their volunteers.) 

CAPABILITIES: In the event that the facility experiences an internal or external communications failure the team can provide inter-facility communications and serve as a relay point to either the Regional Healthcare Coordination Center (RHCC) or the facilitys local Emergency Operations Center (EOC) using the amateur radio.

ACTIVATION: Fort Ward Amateur Radio Club team of volunteer, licensed, amateur radio operators may be activated in advance of severe weather events or in response to other emergencies or disasters by the individual healthcare facility to which they are assigned.

EQUIPMENT: Each participating healthcare facility  has a radio station equipped with the same preprogrammed amateur radio, power supply, SWR meter, TNC controller, laptop computer, installed antenna, back-up antenna and operators manual.  Team members routinely use WINLINK to transmit message traffic between stations. 

OPERATING ENVIRONMENT: Each radio station is located inside of a healthcare facility. This could be a hospital, nursing home or other residential care facility. Amateur radio operators normally work indoors, in a secure, climate controlled environment with access to restrooms, food and water/beverages. 

TIME COMMITTMENT: Fort Ward Amateur Radio Club HEART members participate in biweekly HEART nets using their radio station at their designated healthcare facility. In addition, HEART members also participate in other nets, drills, exercises to maintain their skills and ensure that their respective radio stations are operational.