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About This Site

What are the goals of this site?


  • Enable first responders, first receivers, other healthcare providers, and planners to plan for, respond to, recover from, and mitigate the effects of mass-casualty incidents involving chemicals
  • Provide a comprehensive, user-friendly, web-based resource that is also downloadable in advance, so that it would be available during an event if the internet is not accessible

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Who produced this site?


  • CHEMM was produced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, Office of Planning and Emergency Operations, in cooperation with the National Library of Medicine, Division of Specialized Information Services, and many medical, emergency response, toxicology, and other types of experts.
  • Those responsible for the CHEMM Web site and their affiliations are listed below:

    Editing and Technology Team
    NameExpertiseAgencyGroupDegree
    Pertti Hakkinen
    Managing Editor    		Acting Head, Office of Clinical Toxicology, and Senior Toxicologist, and Toxicology and Environmental Health Science AdvisorNIH
    HHS    		NLM
    SIS    		Ph.D.
    David Siegel
    Associate Managing Editor    		PediatricianNIH
    HHS    		NICHDM.D.
    Mark Kirk
    Associate Managing Editor    		Medical ToxicologistUniversity of VirginiaMedical Simulation Center,
    Department of Emergency Medicine    		M.D.
    H. Florence Chang
    Chief, Technology Team    		Computer ScientistNIHNLM/SISM.S.
    Jennifer Pakiam
    Technology Team    		Bioterrorism
    Subject Matter Expert    		NIHNLM/SISM.S.


    Project Management:
    NameTitleAgencyGroupDegree
    Kevin YeskeyDeputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Preparedness & Emergency ResponseHHSASPRM.D.
    RADM Ann Knebel
    USPHS    		Deputy Director for Preparedness Planning,
    Office of Preparedness and Emergency Operations    		HHSASPRR.N.,
    D.N.Sc.
    John F. KoernerChief, CBRNE Branch
    Division of Preparedness Planning,
    Office of Preparedness and Emergency Operations    		HHSASPRMPH,
    CIH
    Steven J. PhillipsAssociate Director for Specialized Information Services Division, NLM/NIHNIHNLM/SISM.D.

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Disclaimers


Medical

  • Health care providers should consider the specific circumstances of each patient encountered during an emergency and use his/her clinical judgment in providing care. CHEMM information is meant to supplement principles of good clinical management.
  • Recommendations for any patient's medical care should consider not only the specific circumstances of that patient but also the resources available during the emergency.
  • Reference in this Web site to any specific commercial product, process, service, manufacturer, or company does not constitute its endorsement or recommendation by the U.S. government or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or any of its agencies. HHS is not responsible for the contents of any "off-site" Web page referenced on this site.
  • When visiting our site, your Web browser may produce pop-up advertisements. These advertisements were most likely produced by other sites you visited or by third-party software installed on your computer. HHS does not endorse or recommend products or services whose pop-up advertisements may appear on your computer screen while visiting our site.
  • CHEMM medical recommendations are not the official policy of the U.S. government, HHS, or any of its agencies, including those agencies of the CHEMM developers.
  • Neither the U.S. government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information disclosed.
  • CHEMM recommendations are based on what is considered to be the best clinical evidence available. Whenever possible, primary sources of this evidence are cited, and users are encouraged to read these documents.
  • HHS and CHEMM authors and consultants are not responsible for the accuracy of hyperlinked content on Web sites outside of CHEMM.
  • CHEMM is updated frequently as new information becomes available. We encourage all CHEMM users to join the CHEMM ListServ to be notified about these updates, especially if you have downloaded an earlier version of CHEMM.
  • CHEMM recommendations are not intended for use in claims for insurance reimbursement.
  • CHEMM recommendations are not intended for use in medicolegal claims.

Web site

  • Unless otherwise noted, material presented on the CHEMM Web site is considered federal government information and is in the public domain.
  • That means this information may be freely copied and distributed. We request that you use appropriate attribution to CHEMM.
  • Many checklists and other materials are available in PDF format for ease of duplication. Note that if material is adapted or modified, all CHEMM citations and logos must be removed.
  • If copyrighted content, documents, images, or other materials appear at CHEMM, it will be noted, and the copyright holder should be consulted before that material is reproduced.
  • Web site managers are encouraged to link to CHEMM.
  • CHEMM has links to other federal agencies and to private organizations. You are subject to that site's privacy policy when you leave CHEMM.
  • The information at CHEMM provides general summary information for the public. Information at CHEMM does not supercede, preempt, or replace statutes, regulations, or other aspects of federal law.
  • CHEMM provides links to other Internet sites only for the convenience of World Wide Web users. CHEMM is not responsible for the availability or content of these external sites, nor does CHEMM endorse, warrant or guarantee the products, services or information described or offered at these other Internet sites. It is the responsibility of the user to examine the copyright and licensing restrictions of linked pages and to secure all necessary permission.
  • CHEMM is maintained by the U.S. government and is protected by various provisions of Title 18 of the U.S. Code. Violations of Title 18 are subject to criminal prosecution in federal court.
  • For site security purposes and to ensure that this service remains available to all users, we employ software programs to monitor traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information or otherwise cause damage. In the event of authorized law enforcement investigations, and pursuant to any required legal process, information from these sources may be used to help identify an individual.

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List of consultants


Content Expertise / Institution / Name
Acute Patient Care Guidelines

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, NIH
David Siegel, MD, Pediatrics
(Primary editor and author)

University of Pittsburg, PA
Richard Beigi MD, OB-Gyn

Lutheran Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY
Iffath Hoskins MD, OB-Gyn

U.S. Army
James M. Madsen MD, MPH, FCAP, FACOEM, COL, MC-FS
Jonathan Newmark, M.D., FAAN
      Colonel, Medical Corps, US Army
      Consultant to the Surgeon General, Chemical Casualty Care
      Deputy Joint Program Executive Officer, Medical Systems
      Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical/Biological Defense
      US Department of Defense

HHS/ASPR
Andrew L. Garrett MD, Pediatrics, EMS

Cornell University Medical Center
Steven Weinstein MD, Neurologist

Chicago Children's Hospital, IL
Steven Krug MD, Emergency Medicine

Children National Medical Center, DC
Daniel Ochsenschlager MD, Emergency Medicine
Daniel Fagbuyi MD, Emergency Medicine

Montefiore Children's Hospital, Bronx, NY
Michael Ushay MD, ICU
Marco Ayulo MD, ICU


CHEMM Intelligent Syndromes Tool: CHEMM-IST

University of Virginia, Department of Emergency Medicine, Medical Simulation Center
Mark Kirk, MD, Emergency Medicine, Medical Toxicology
(Originator of the concept for CHEMM-IST)

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, NIH
David Siegel, MD, Pediatrics

Virginia Department of Health, Office of Emergency Medical Services
Michael D. Berg BS, NREMT-P/EMT-I/EMT-D

Emergency Medical Services / Paramedic
Rita Krenz MS, NREMT-P (Freelance EMS Educator)

James Madison University
Michael Deaton, Professor, Integrated Science and Technology
Joseph Marchal, Professor, Computer Science

Content Review

HHS/ASPR/OPEO
John Koerner, MPH, CIH

HHS/CDC/NIOSH
Richard W. Niemeier, Ph.D.

HHS/ASPR/OPEO/NDMS
Andrew L. Garrett MD, Pediatrics, EMS

U.S. Army
James M. Madsen MD, MPH, FCAP, FACOEM, COL, MC-FS
Jonathan Newmark, M.D., FAAN
      Colonel, Medical Corps, US Army
      Consultant to the Surgeon General, Chemical Casualty Care
      Deputy Joint Program Executive Officer, Medical Systems
      Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical/Biological Defense
      US Department of Defense

Children National Medical Center, DC
Daniel Ochsenschlager MD, Emergency Medicine

University of Pittsburg, PA
Richard Beigi MD, OB-Gyn

Lutheran Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY
Iffath Hoskins MD, OB-Gyn

FEMA Emergency Management Instititue, National Emergency Training Center
John Hoyle

CHEMTREC
Rick Raksnis, Director, Operations Center

Dupont Belle Plant
Barry Lindley, Senior Emergency Response Specialist

Vanderbilt University
John G. Benitez MD, MPH, FAACT, FACMT, FACPM, FAAEM




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Join CHEMM ListServ


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Contact us: Provide site feedback


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  • We sincerely appreciate your feedback, but will not be able to respond to your email.
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Download CHEMM to your computer


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CHEMM wins award


CHEMM's Managing Editor, Dr. Pertti Hakkinen, has received 2011 Risk Communication Award from the Alliance for Chemical Safety.


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CHEMM system requirements


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Linking policy


  • The CHEMM encourages links to its pages. Links to the CHEMM home page (http://chemm.nlm.nih.gov) are preferred but links to individual pages within the CHEMM Web site are also permissible, provided attribution is made to HHS and/or CHEMM and any descriptive notes accurately reflect the content of the linked page(s). Links should refer to CHEMM as "Chemical Hazards Emergency Medical Management: CHEMM (US Department of Health and Human Services)."
  • You may not frame or manipulate Web addresses (URLs) so that CHEMM pages appear on a URL other than http://chemm.nlm.nih.gov or one of its subpages. You may not give the impression or create the illusion that CHEMM content is under another domain name or location.
  • Some pages on CHEMM may contain links to external Web sites. These links are provided for convenience and informational purposes, and do not represent endoresement of any specific commercial products. Links should not be displayed in any manner that would imply such an endorsement by CHEMM or the Department of Health and Human Services.

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