ECare - Chapter 37 (Hazardous Materials, Multiple-Casualty Incidents, and Incident Management) Flashcards
hazardous material
any substance in a form that poses an unreasonable risk to health, safety, and property when transported in commerce or kept in storage
responsibilities of the EMT
recognize a hazmat incident exists, calling in appropriate resources, controlling the scene, and identifying the substance
hot zone
area immediately surrounding a hazmat incident; extends far enough to prevent adverse effects outside the zone
warm zone
area where personnel and equipment decontamination and hot zone support take place; it includes control points for the access corridor and, thus, assists in reducing the spread of contamination
cold zone
area where Incident Command post and support functions are located
secondary contamination
when a contaminated person makes contact with someone who previously was “clean”
rehabilitation
in cold zone, used to monitor hazmat team members
decontamination
chemical/physical process that reduces/prevents spread of contamination rom persons to equipment; removal of hazardous substances from employees and their equipment to the extent necessary to preclude foreseeable health effects
decontamination corridor location
warm zone
gross decontamination
removal of chemical alteration of the majority of the contaminant
secondary decontamination
alteration or removal of most of the residual product contamination
mechanisms for decontamination
emulsification, chemical reaction, disinfection, dilution, absorption/adsorption, removal, disposal
National Incident Management System (NIMS)
management system used by federal, state, and local governments to manage emergencies in the US
incident Command System (ICS)
subset of NIMS designed for management of MCIs
Command
the first on the scene to establish order and initiate the ICS
single incident command
command organization where a single agency controls all resources and operations
unfied command
command organization where many agencies work independently but cooperatively
Incident Command
person(s) who assume overall direction of a large-scale incident
triage
the process of quickly assessing pts at a MCI and assigning each a priority for receiving treatment
Priority 1
Treatable Life-Threatening Illnesses or Injuries: airway/breathing difficulties, severe bleeding, decreased mental status, severe medical probs shock, burns
Priority 2
Serious but Not Life-Threatening Illnesses or Injuries: Pts who have burns without airway problems, major/many bone/joint injuries, back injuries with/without spinal cord damage
Priority 3
Walking Wounded: pts with minor musculoskeletal injuries or minor soft-tissue injuries
Priority 4
Dead or Fatally Injured: exposed brain matter, cardiac arrest, decapitation, severed trunk incineration
START triage
Respiration, Pulse, Mental Status; should take no more than 30 sec
Questions for START triage
If pts can walk, they are green (priority 3)
not breathing before and after opening airway - black (priority 0)
not breathing but is after opening airway with more than 30 breaths/min - red (priority 1)
not breathing but is after opening airway with less than 30 breaths/min - check pulse
breathing, no pulse - red (priority 1)
breathing, pulse, good skin signs, and cap refill - check mental status
unresponsive, not breathing, no pulse - black (priority 0)
alert - yellow (priority 2)
altered - red (priority 1)
after, reassess priority 3s
treatments during START triage
open an airway/insert OPA, apply pressure to bleeding, elevate an extremity
triage area
area where secondary triage takes place
staging area
area where ambulances are parked and other resources are held
surge capacity
measurable representation of ability to manage a sudden influx of pts; dependent on a well-functioning incident management system and the variables of space, supplies, staff, and others
