How long did it take your staff to put it up and how much warning of the
patients arrival did you have?
Or when you said pre-hospital were these ambulance decontamination kits?
Ray
----- Original Message -----
From: "Steve Waspe" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, December 06, 2003 9:59 AM
Subject: Re: Decontamination
> Yes, a couple of times pre-hospital for "white powder" worried well and
> a suicide attempt using commercially available organo-phosphate weed
> killer.
>
> The latter had two casualties the first being the attempted suicide
> himself the second was the ASW who got to "close" and received secondary
> contamination.
>
> Steve,
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Accident and Emergency Academic List
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ray McGlone
> Sent: Saturday, December 06, 2003 9:21 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Decontamination
>
> Last year A&E departments in England were provided with an inflatable
> decontamination facility.... has anyone used it...... excluding training
> exercises?
>
> Ray McGlone
> A&E Lancaster
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Steve Waspe" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Saturday, December 06, 2003 7:53 AM
> Subject: Re: Decontamination
>
>
> With regards to the first part of the question as far as I am aware
> there is
> no "black box" currently available which is sensitive enough to assess
> the
> external cleanliness of patients post decontamination for all or any of
> the
> Chemical/Biological Warfare Agents or the Toxic Industrial Chemicals.
>
> It is generally held however that 80% of all surface contaminant is
> removed
> by taking off the casualty's outer clothing and that 80% of the
> remaining
> 20% is removed by Rinse-Wipe-Rinse method. Even so the Home Office
> National
> Strategic Guidance on decontamination states that: It might not always
> be
> possible to guarantee that a casualty will be totally decontaminated at
> the
> end of this procedure. Remain cautious and observe for ill effects in
> the
> decontaminated person and in staff.
>
> This brings us to the second part of the question, "internal"
> contamination.
> Recently an incident involving one of the amine group saw a casualty
> admitted to A&E externally clean post decontamination but still "off
> gassing" through the ventilator. This did not become apparent until a
> number of staff became unwell and subsequent blood testing revealed the
> presence of amine.
>
> There are therefore problems around excretion and this, I suggest is
> where
> early specialist advice from the Health Protection Agency which includes
> the
> Division of Chemical Hazards and Poisons, the National Radiological
> Protection Board (from April 2004) and the Public Health Laboratory
> Service,
> comes into play.
>
>
> Steve,
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Accident and Emergency Academic List
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Fee, Charles
> Sent: Thursday, December 04, 2003 3:10 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Decontamination
>
> Dear All on list,
>
> Can I ask if, in the context of a CBRN incident, is there guidance on
> how we
> are to assess patients as being effectively decontaminated and safe for
> admission to A/E and the hospital? I am aware that designated regional
> units
> should assist / perform radioactivity checks where this is appropriate
> but
> what of the other types of contamination?
>
> I can imagine there are some situations where it will be apparently easy
> to
> see if gross contamination has been successfully removed, but in others
> not
> so. Are there standards for the R/W/R process which apply and which
> would
> produce a clean patient?
>
> There are then those who may continue to excrete potentially toxic
> substances but who require urgent ingoing medical care.
>
> Thank you for your comments,
>
> C Fee
>
>
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