TY - JOUR
T1 - Preparedness of German paramedics and emergency physicians for a mass casualty incident
T2 - A national survey
AU - Fischer, Philipp
AU - Kabir, Karoush
AU - Weber, Oliver
AU - Wirtz, Dieter C.
AU - Bail, Hermann
AU - Ruchholtz, Steffen
AU - Stein, Mickey
AU - Burger, Christof
PY - 2008/10
Y1 - 2008/10
N2 - Objective: Paramedics and physicians are important components of our emergency medical system. To date, no survey has been carried out assessing physicians and paramedics regarding their preparedness for a mass casualty incident (MCI) resulting from a terrorist attack in Germany. The aim of this study was to assess the current state of preparedness of emergency physicians and paramedics for an MCI. Materials and Methods: Using an online questionnaire, we interviewed 1,707 emergency physicians and paramedics in Germany. The replies were analyzed statistically with the one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test and the Tukey-Kramer multiple comparisons test. Results: In all, 95% of the emergency physicians and paramedics knew their area of responsibility in the case of an MCI. However, 45% of them were unaware of injury patterns and treatment strategies in patients following nuclear, chemical or biological contamination. Of the interviewed emergency physicians and paramedics, 97% asked for further specific training for MCI/terrorism attacks. Conclusions: Emergency physicians and paramedics are still insufficiently prepared for nuclear, chemical, and biological as well as conventional terrorism attacks. The emergency training of emergency physicians and paramedics must be modified to accommodate the increased risk of catastrophes and terrorist attacks.
AB - Objective: Paramedics and physicians are important components of our emergency medical system. To date, no survey has been carried out assessing physicians and paramedics regarding their preparedness for a mass casualty incident (MCI) resulting from a terrorist attack in Germany. The aim of this study was to assess the current state of preparedness of emergency physicians and paramedics for an MCI. Materials and Methods: Using an online questionnaire, we interviewed 1,707 emergency physicians and paramedics in Germany. The replies were analyzed statistically with the one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test and the Tukey-Kramer multiple comparisons test. Results: In all, 95% of the emergency physicians and paramedics knew their area of responsibility in the case of an MCI. However, 45% of them were unaware of injury patterns and treatment strategies in patients following nuclear, chemical or biological contamination. Of the interviewed emergency physicians and paramedics, 97% asked for further specific training for MCI/terrorism attacks. Conclusions: Emergency physicians and paramedics are still insufficiently prepared for nuclear, chemical, and biological as well as conventional terrorism attacks. The emergency training of emergency physicians and paramedics must be modified to accommodate the increased risk of catastrophes and terrorist attacks.
KW - Emergency training
KW - Mass casualty incident
KW - Paramedics
KW - Physicians
KW - Preparedness
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=54949129301&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s00068-008-8803-4
DO - 10.1007/s00068-008-8803-4
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AN - SCOPUS:54949129301
SN - 1863-9933
VL - 34
SP - 443
EP - 450
JO - European Journal of Trauma and Emergency Surgery
JF - European Journal of Trauma and Emergency Surgery
IS - 5
ER -