Journal of business continuity & emergency planning
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J Bus Contin Emer Plan · Nov 2014
Clinical guidelines for responding to chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and trauma/burn mass casualty incidents: Quick reference guides for emergency department staff.
The word 'DISASTER' may be used as a mnemonic for listing the critical elements of emergency response. The National Disaster Life Support Education Foundation's (NDLSEC) DISASTER paradigm emphasises out-of-hospital emergency response and includes the following elements: (1) detect; (2) incident command system; (3) security and safety; (4) assessment; (5) support; (6) triage and treatment; (7) evacuate; and (8) recovery. ⋯ The information contributed by a group of subject matter experts in disaster medicine, at the Yale New Haven Health System Center for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response was used to author the clinical guidelines. Akin to the paradigm developed by the NDLSEC for conducting on-scene activities, the clinical guidelines use the letters in the word 'disaster' as a mnemonic for recalling the main elements required for mitigating MCIs in the hospital emergency department.