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RESPONSES
TO QUESTIONS FROM THE
HONORABLE STEVE BUYER CHAIRMAN OF THE SUBCOMMITEE ON OVERSIGHT AND INVESTIGATIONS FROM THE NOVEMBER
14, 2001 HEARING ON “TERROR ON THE HOME FRONT; ARE WE MEDICALLY
PREPARED” 1.
In your testimony, you mentioned that the “management of
WMD events occurs at several levels, which include preparation, first
response, public health response and individual provider response.”
You went on to assert, “while each level requires a different
knowledge base, everyone requires a basic level of understanding.”
What should that basic level of understanding include and how
should that information be disseminated throughout the health care
community? The basic level of
understanding required by the public health system and individual
healthcare providers includes: basic
knowledge of how to initially manage the effects of common biological
agents used for mass destruction, i.e., anthrax, smallpox, tularemia,
plague, etc.; knowledge of resources available and whom to contact in
case of such an emergency. This information can be disseminated through Continuing
Medical Education courses offered by many organizations and hospitals
as well as through the Internet.
In addition, medical schools and other health sciences could
incorporate such training into their curricula. 2.
You spoke about your office’s state of readiness on
October 15th. Would
it be beneficial for all medical facilities to inform the Director of
Homeland Defense of their readiness capability? All medical
facilities should be aware of their own organization’s capabilities
in responding to a mass casualty event involving weapons of mass
destruction. Rather than
informing Director Ridge’s Office of each organization’s readiness
state, the Director of Homeland Defense should be consulted to
determine appropriate guidelines for defining medical readiness.
Moreover, these guidelines would probably be tailored based on
demographics and areas deemed critical for national security. 3.
In your opinion what will motivate the health care education
community to incorporate weapons of mass destruction training into
their curricula? I believe that the events of 2001 have provided significant motivation for the medical community to incorporate weapons of mass destruction training into their standard curricula. This motivation, however, must be crystallized and fully implemented if we are to maintain an appropriate level of training within our nation’s medical community. Sufficient resources from state and local levels will certainly be required to successfully develop and implement such programs. Back to Witness List |