Improving Medical Preparedness for Chemical Accidents: An Inter-Organizational Resource Review

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Abstract
While emergency planning to cope with chemical accidents has accelerated since Bhopal, there is evidence that the medical sector is not preparing at the same pace as the broader emergency response community. This paper presents a rationale for improving medical sector preparedness. In order to integrate the medical community more fully into emergency management planning and coordination, a common base of resources is presented. It is suggested that cooperative planning could emerge if both the broader emergency response community and specialized medical sectors had a common understanding of how one assesses community risk and the resources available to improve preparedness. A compendium of documents, legal mandates and response models is presented.