Responding to and managing casualties: detection, personal protection, and decontamination.

Unfortunately, a mass casualty caused by chemical or biologic terrorism has become a real threat to the United States. A well-considered preparedness plan is needed to minimize tOe impact of a chemical or biologic attack on civilians and responders. This article describes some of the key elements in a preparedness plan, specifically issues regarding early detection, decontamination. and personal protection. Although chemical and biologic terrorism is often considered as a single entity, there are important distinctions in detection, decontamination, and personal protection procedures that effect preparedness planning. Therefore, any preparedness plan needs to be flexible enough to deal with both biologic and chemical terrorism. Preparedness plans also need to be thorough enough to deal with the differences in response to a variety of specific chemical or biologic agents.