Emergency Preparedness and Response
Course Question
Disaster Condition - ✔✔-significant natural disaster or man made event that overwhelms the
affected area
-necessitates both federal public health and medical care assistance
-large number of victims may require response of multiple organizations
Triage priorities - ✔✔-greatest good for the greatest number of people
Terrorist Attacks - ✔✔-terrorism has created the need to prepare against a variety of different
agents
-standardized nomenclature for potential agents (known as CBRBE)
CBRNE - ✔✔-Chemical
-Biological
-Radiologic
-Nuclear
-Explosive
Chemical Agents - ✔✔-kill through a variety of means: nerve, vesicant, blood, and choking
-spread easily through air and cause immediate affects
-require decontamination
-require trained hazardous material (Hazmat) teams
-treatment: depends on agent used, may require agent-specific medications, decontamination,
use or PPE
, Biologic Agents - ✔✔-small quantities can have a large affect
-difficult to prepare
-Treatments: depends on agent used, most cause flu-like symptoms, plague and smallpox most
contagious, timing of specific treatment critical, delayed effects
Radiologic Agents - ✔✔-Expression may be delayed; depends on time, distance, shielding,
quantity of radioactive material
-psychologic effect likely to be substantial
-often used in conjunction with explosive devices (dirty bomb)
-Treatment:
*immediate effects: radiation burns/acute poisioning
*long term: cancer/contamination of drinking water
*decontamination must occur before patient care can begin
Nuclear Agents - ✔✔-damage consists of blast range effects, thermal and nuclear radiation, and
radioactive fallout
-contamination can remain for many years
-psychologic effect likely to be substantial
-treatment: symptomatic: thermal burns, shrapnel injuries, and radioactive fallout.
Decontamination is required
Explosive Agents - ✔✔-most common method of terrorists
-cause violent decomposition and pressure/temp changes; propellents cause injury and/or
death
-Treatment: symptomatic, many required tx of burns
Preparedness Stage - ✔✔-focused on planning, preparedness, prevention, and warning
-every disaster begins as a local event
Course Question
Disaster Condition - ✔✔-significant natural disaster or man made event that overwhelms the
affected area
-necessitates both federal public health and medical care assistance
-large number of victims may require response of multiple organizations
Triage priorities - ✔✔-greatest good for the greatest number of people
Terrorist Attacks - ✔✔-terrorism has created the need to prepare against a variety of different
agents
-standardized nomenclature for potential agents (known as CBRBE)
CBRNE - ✔✔-Chemical
-Biological
-Radiologic
-Nuclear
-Explosive
Chemical Agents - ✔✔-kill through a variety of means: nerve, vesicant, blood, and choking
-spread easily through air and cause immediate affects
-require decontamination
-require trained hazardous material (Hazmat) teams
-treatment: depends on agent used, may require agent-specific medications, decontamination,
use or PPE
, Biologic Agents - ✔✔-small quantities can have a large affect
-difficult to prepare
-Treatments: depends on agent used, most cause flu-like symptoms, plague and smallpox most
contagious, timing of specific treatment critical, delayed effects
Radiologic Agents - ✔✔-Expression may be delayed; depends on time, distance, shielding,
quantity of radioactive material
-psychologic effect likely to be substantial
-often used in conjunction with explosive devices (dirty bomb)
-Treatment:
*immediate effects: radiation burns/acute poisioning
*long term: cancer/contamination of drinking water
*decontamination must occur before patient care can begin
Nuclear Agents - ✔✔-damage consists of blast range effects, thermal and nuclear radiation, and
radioactive fallout
-contamination can remain for many years
-psychologic effect likely to be substantial
-treatment: symptomatic: thermal burns, shrapnel injuries, and radioactive fallout.
Decontamination is required
Explosive Agents - ✔✔-most common method of terrorists
-cause violent decomposition and pressure/temp changes; propellents cause injury and/or
death
-Treatment: symptomatic, many required tx of burns
Preparedness Stage - ✔✔-focused on planning, preparedness, prevention, and warning
-every disaster begins as a local event
