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Disaster management mobile protocols: A technology that will save lives

Hope M. Williamson, Major, USA, DNP, ACNP-BC, CCNS, CEN, NREMT

Abstract


Although training and education have long been accepted as integral to disaster preparedness, many currently taught practices are neither evidence based nor standardized.The need for effective evidence-based disaster education for healthcare workers at all levels in the multidisciplinary medical response to major events has been designated by the disaster response community as a high priority. This article describes a disaster management mobile application of systematic evidence-based practice. The application is interactive and comprises portable principles, algorithms, and emergency protocols that are agile, concise, comprehensive, and response relevant to all healthcare workers. Early recognition through clinical assessment versus laboratory and diagnostic procedures in chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRNE) exposures grounded in an evidencebased skill set is especially important. During the immediate threat, the clinical diagnosis can get frustrating because CBRNE casualties can mimic everyday healthcare illnesses and initially present with nonspecific respiratory or flu-like symptoms. As there is minimal time in a catastrophic event for the medical provider to make accurate decisions, access to accurate, timely, and comprehensive information in these situations is critical. The CBRNE mobile application is intended to provide a credible source for treatment and management of numerous patients in an often intimidating environment with scarce resources and overwhelming tasks.

Keywords


chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high-yield explosives, weapons of mass destruction, mass casualty incident, disaster management mobile protocols

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References


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DOI: https://doi.org/10.5055/ajdm.2011.0045

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