I had my flu shot this morning, which, for some reason, made me think of the smallpox vaccine. According to the CDC, the United States has a big enough stockpile of the smallpox vaccine for everyone in the United States. For a nice overview of the smallpox vaccine, which includes a section on possible side effects, please click on the following site.

Check this out!  Did we think that our procedures are fine for shelter-in-place?  Take a look at this document from the “Redefining Readiness” work group, authored by some very well-spoken people from the New York Academy of Medicine.  Having any procedure is better than none, I suppose, but the questions raised by this document are as good as “lessons learned” before the event happens!  Back to the drawing board we go!

 Below is an excerpt from Disaster Planning Drills and Readiness Assessment presenting a continuous cycle of disaster preparedness.  The emphasis of the entire brief is on bioterrorism planning for hospitals.

The Continuous Cycle of Disaster Preparedness

• Assemble an interdisciplinary team of key stakeholders for disaster planning.
• Review current resources, strengths, and weaknesses.
• Develop a detailed, written disaster response plan.
• Disseminate and practice the plan through education and drills.
• Evaluate the adequacy of knowledge, skills, and resources.
• Revise the plan based on objective data and lessons learned.
• Modify education and training as needed to target areas of weakness.
• Continuously repeat these steps.

The CDC has released a publication titled, In a Moment’s Notice: Surge Capacity for Terrorist Bombings.  The 57-page document contains a lot of good information and proposed solutions for handling a patient surge following a terrorist bombing.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has a nice FAQ on dirty bombs.  Included at the bottom of the page are links to additional sources.

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services has released Radiation Event Medical Management, a diagnosis and treatment guidance website for health care providers faced with radiation exposure incidents.   Content on REMM is capable of being downloaded in advance, so that it would be available if the internet is not available.

There have been a lot of news stories lately about insurgents using dirty bombs in Iraq. In addition, there have also been reports that dirty bombs could be used by terrorist to attack cities in the United States. For a description of what a dirty bomb is, and what its impact might be, please check out this fact sheet from the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Ready or Not? Protecting the Public’s Health from Disease, Disasters, and Bioterrorism, was released yesterday by the Trust for America’s Health. The report ranks the level of preparedness for handling health emergencies for each state.

Ready or Not? Protecting the Public’s Health from Disease, Disasters, and Bioterrorism, was released yesterday by the Trust for America’s Health. The report ranks the level of preparedness for handling health emergencies for each state.

Yesterday, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention released “Training for Terrorism Related Conditions in Hospitals: United States, 2003-2004.”  The report focuses on the ability of hospitals to respond to a bioterrorism attack.