Suchergebnisse

The United Nations World Health Organization assessed the risk of a pandemic to be level three out of six, since a new flu strain has appeared in humans, but is not yet spreading between people. The traditional attitude that medical concerns are a national responsibility has restricted optimum consideration of the potential consequences for NATO, such as its reaction to a breakdown of civil authority in the wake of a pandemic, the potential severity of a sudden outbreak among deployed troops, whether deployed forces could be immunized quickly enough, and whether national authorities would cut their soldiers for deployment. Figures. Adapted from the source document.

The Handbook for Pandemic and Mass-Casualty Planning and Response offers the disaster medicine professional community the information and tools to better prepare, individually and collaboratively, to mitigate mortality and morbidity when catastrophe occurs. It captures the lectures and teachings of an extraordinary 12 day NATO Advanced Study Institute held in Croatia in late 2011: 'Applying lessons learned and sharing best practices in addressing pandemics and catastrophic health events.' The results of this event, held under the auspices of the NATO Science for Peace and Security Programme, are presented in three sections: The Context of Catastrophic Health Planning; Principles of Response to Catastrophes with Mass Casualties; and Communication and Information Sharing. The handbook presents rigorous, standardized cross-disciplinary training, such as Medical Response to Major Incidents; the need to guide medical and humanitarian efforts by ethical principles; the importance of risk communication and trustworthy information; treatment guidelines along with medical and surgical practices for amputation, burns, and blast injuries; triage guidelines and treatment algorithms; principles of mass-casualty planning; and the need to identify and correctly position -in advance- the networks and collaborative structures that must work together and share capabilities. Drawing on experts from Croatia, Slovenia, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the Russian Federation, Italy, Spain, Mexico and the United States - and especially on Croatia's experience handling mass casualties during its Homeland War in the 1990s - this handbook combines research and real-world examples to assist the disaster response community in preparing for mass-casualty incidents.

"A guide and reference to address the gap across the science, policy and management areas. Resource for diagnostic and decision making, offers the context in which to manage mass fatality"--Provided by publisher

Both US foreign policy and global attention attest to the strategic, economic, and political importance of Asia. Yet, the region faces urgent challenges that must be addressed if it is to remain stable and prosperous. The densely populated countries of the Asia-Pacific are beleaguered by poverty, population displacement, decreasing access to potable water and adequate sanitation, and high rates of disease morbidity and mortality. New and reemerging diseases known to have originated in Asia over the past decades have spread globally by international trade, tourism, worker migration, and agricultural exportation. Unremitting naturally occurring and man-made disasters have strained Southeast Asia's already fragile disaster and public health response infrastructures and the essential services they provide (eg, surveillance, vaccination, maternal and child health, and mental health programs). Following disasters, governments often contract with the broader humanitarian community (eg, indigenous and international NGOs) and seek the assistance of militaries to provide essential services. Yet, their roles and capabilities in addressing acute and chronic health issues in the wake of complex disasters remain unclear. Current mechanisms of nation-state and outside organization interaction, including dissimilar operational platforms, may limit true partnership on behalf of the health security mission. Additionally, concerns regarding skill sets and the lack of standards-based training raise questions about the balance between developing internal response capabilities and professionalizing external, deployable resources. Both the mega-disasters that are forecast for the region and the global health security threats that are expected to emanate from them require an increased focus on improving the Asia-Pacific's emergency preparedness and response posture.