Deborah J. Persell

Chemical agents of terrorism: Preparing nurse practitioners

Nurse practitioners must exercise vigilant readiness to properly care for victims of chemical injuries. In this article, appropriate clinical management of each category of chemicals is addressed, including supportive and pharmacologic care. Triage decisions are explained and decontamination concerns are identified. Attention is directed at special populations such as children and the elderly.

Preparing for bioterrorism: category A agents.

September 11, 2001, brought the possibility of biologic acts of terrorism against the United States into the national consciousness. As the American people brace themselves for this new threat to the national well-being, clinicians must understand how to prevent, recognize, and treat the biologic agents that could be used in terrorist attacks. This article discusses the most likely biologic agents, including diagnostic laboratory procedures, treatment options, psychological effects, special populations, and reporting requirements.

Detection and early identification in bioterrorism events.

Syndromic surveillance, collecting and analyzing symptoms before diagnosis, has the potential to identify bioterrorist attacks in a timely, flexible, and specific manner. Nurses are important resources in collecting and interpreting surveillance data. Clinical skills in early diagnosis may identify a bioterrorist attack before surveillance systems and independently trigger investigations. Computerized syndromic surveillance systems are difficult to sustain and are not in use nationwide. Traditional public health surveillance is not replaced by syndromic surveillance. Weaknesses remain in surveillance related to bioterrorism preparedness. Bioterrorist events must be recognized in a timely manner, but this is dependent on sufficient funding for training, equipment, and personnel.

Caring for victims of nuclear and radiological terrorism.

As primary care providers, we must consider the manifestations of radiation sickness and syndromes when managing radiological injuries. Assessment and treatment regimens include unique sample handling requirements to avoid self-contamination and further contamination of the environment. Addressing psychological aspects and the needs of pediatric and geriatric populations is also important for effective treatment.

Toward a Theory of Homeland Security Nursing

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville has established a masters and PhD in nursing with a concentration in homeland security degree to meet the need of advanced nursing expertise to provide nursing care in mass casualty incidents related to natural disasters, accidental exposure to toxic agents, war and terrorism or other threats to the homeland. Homeland security nurses will prepare and execute comprehensive plans for major public health emergencies. Utilizing Neumans Systems Model, the nursing process and goals of the Department of Homeland Security are compared and contrasted to form the theoretical and practice base for homeland security nursing. An application of homeland security nursing utilizing Neumans Systems Model is provided.

Vehicle of Hope: Faith-based Disaster Response

In August 2005, the United States experienced one of the most catastrophic and costly disasters in its history: Hurricane Katrina. Faith-based Organizations (FBOs) made a major contribution to the response and recovery efforts. Whereas the activities and skill sets of FBOs vary, their core missions are very similar: they want to provide hope. As a concept, hope has been purported to be essential for health and well-being, is viewed as multidimensional and a life force, as well as is highly individualized. This mixed methods study used interviews of the phenomenology tradition and the Herth Hope Index.