Chemical Agents of Opportunity for Terrorism: TICs & TIMs

Chemical Agents of Opportunity for Terrorism
Training Support Package
Participant Guide
Slide 35
Chemical Agents of Opportunity for Terrorism:
TICs & TIMs
Planning Suggestions
• Expect the problem – Plan for it
• “Base disaster plans on what people are likely to do rather
than what they should do ”
Auf der Heide : Disaster Response: Principles of Preparation and Response
• Don’t ignore these patients
– And take them seriously
• Early diagnostic & management decisions are critical to the
success of the emergency response
– EDs have little surge capacity
– Decontamination and PPE burden the health care system
Module One – Observed Behaviors during Mass Chemical Exposures
35
The problem of stress-response symptoms and their effect on both the number of people
presenting for evaluation and the interpretation of clinical presentations is very real and
should be incorporated into disaster planning.
As one of the CDC–based emergency physicians has written, disaster plans should be
based on what people are LIKELY to do, rather than what they SHOULD do.
Since you can be sure that people will seek care if concerned or scared – and will not
wait for an orderly triage or decontamination process in the field – we should plan to
direct people arriving to our hospitals to an area that allows for secondary triage, to
avoid overwhelming the acute care areas. Expert assistance should be sought to
determine the actual need for decontamination, and the need for or level of personal
protective equipment (PPE).
December 2008 Version 2.0 Page 461