Chemical and Biological Terrorism Research and Development to Improve Civilian Medical Response (1999) / Chapter Skim
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10 Computer-Related Tools for Training and Operations
10 Computer-Related Tools for Training and Operations
Pages 174-183
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From page 174... ...
and potential doses; (3) conduct a hazard assessment and recommend practical intervention procedures (e.g., isolation, shielding, distribution of pharmaceuticals)
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From page 175... ...
These tools will also decrease the need for frequent participation in large exercises that can be disruptive, logistically complicated, expensive, and unproductive. MEDICAL VIGILANCE AND DOSE RECONSTRUCTION Extremely rare infections, chemical exposures, or alternatively, temporally or geographically unusual or uncommonly frequent adversehealth effects could serve as an early warning that there has been a covert release of a chemical or biological substance into a civilian population.
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From page 176... ...
Not only would it contribute to forensic epidemiology related especially to covert acts of biological and perhaps chemical terrorism, but it would also help to recognize instances of emerging disease or infection. For example, a computerized analysis could be designed to promptly detect in the data any unusual disease or chemical toxicity events, as well as those with particular characteristics related to specific chemicals or microorganisms, that might otherwise be ignored or uncorrelated because of infrequency or geospatial and/or temporal dispersion, and then alert public health authorities to this finding.
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From page 177... ...
During any threatened or actual act of chemical or biological terrorism, the immediate reaction of the first-responder community will be to identify the specific agent, determine the best methods for reaching and treating any exposed individuals, decide whether to evacuate any critically ill or other potentially susceptible members of the population (e.g., children, seniors, etc.) , and consider the most appropriate ways to avert further exposures and casualties.
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From page 178... ...
Where public event planning requires that consideration be given to preparing for chemical or biological terrorism, or there is advance knowledge of the likely location, timing, and type of such a terrorist act, then transport and fate modeling can be performed to determine the extent of the release and to identify the population likely to be exposed. The models that would be used for this purpose are those that assess the movement and dissipation of the agent and identify potential locations of serious exposures as well as surfaces of contamination.
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From page 179... ...
For addressing release directly into the atmosphere the available models range from the simple (Gaussian puff simulating advection and dispersion) that can be operated on a desktop personal computer to the complex (three-dimensional, particle-tracking models that use real-time acquisition of local meteorological data and account for terrain)
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From page 180... ...
Because this system uses real-time meteorological information, particle tracking, and accounts for complexity of terrain, it is a numerically complex tool that does not operate on a desktop personal computer and requires trained personnel for operation and interpreta
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From page 181... ...
With such expertise, it is conceivable these models could be used to produce contingency plans based on conservative parameter estimates, as well as provide conservative estimates of concentration levels over a landscape in the event of real emergencies. Training to respond to a chemical or biological terrorist act can involve using any currently available atmospheric-dispersion modeling system and would help prepare the first responder community intellectually to deal with unfamiliar situations.
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From page 182... ...
R&D NEEDS The Committee advocates the following research and development efforts be undertaken to enhance and sustain the capabilities of the medical community to deal with chemical and biological terrorism. Such events, serious as they are, have a low probability of occurrence, but the products of these R&D efforts will also help to identify emerging infections and diseases and to respond to events involving hazardous substances released unintentionally in industrial settings.
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From page 183... ...
Such systems represent a training tool that can be designed to be userfriendly, easy to learn, run on networks that can be accessed at multiple locations, and used frequently by all levels of thefirst-responder community. Additionally, these models can be customized to meet the needs of individual communities, and will reduce the costs and inconveniences associated with stagingfrequent exercises while permitting the emergency management community to enhance and sustain capabilities to realistically plan for and adjust to unanticipated environmental changes, communication failures, and human behavior.
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