Clinical guidelines for responding to chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and trauma/burn mass casualty incidents: Quick reference guides for emergency department staff

Joseph Albanese, David Burich, Deborah Smith, Lynn Hayes, James Paturas and Anthony Tomassoni

Journal of Business Continuity & Emergency Planning, 2014, vol. 8, issue 2, 122-133

Abstract: The word ‘DISASTER’ may be used as a mnemonic for listing the critical elements of emergency response. The National Disaster Life Support Education Foundation’s (NDLSEC) DISASTER paradigm emphasises out-of-hospital emergency response and includes the following elements: (1) detect; (2) incident command system; (3) security and safety; (4) assessment; (5) support; (6) triage and treatment; (7) evacuate; and (8) recovery. This paper describes how the DISASTER paradigm was used to create a series of clinical guidelines to assist the preparedness effort of hospitals for mitigating chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear incidents or explosive devices resulting in trauma/burn mass casualty incidents (MCIs) and their initial response to these events. Descriptive information was obtained from observations and records associated with this project. The information contributed by a group of subject matter experts in disaster medicine, at the Yale New Haven Health System Center for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response was used to author the clinical guidelines. Akin to the paradigm developed by the NDLSEC for conducting on-scene activities, the clinical guidelines use the letters in the word ‘disaster’ as a mnemonic for recalling the main elements required for mitigating MCIs in the hospital emergency department.

Keywords: clinical guidelines; CBRN; hospital readiness; mass casualty incidents; emergency department (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: M1 M10 M12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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