Biological agents casualties

B. Isolation Procedures (Barrier Nursing). In the context of biological agent casualties, adherence to principles of patient isolation is essential to preventing cross-infection with transmissible agents. 

Isolation Procedures Once a victim of chemical or biological agents or weapons gets to the hospital or another healthcare facility, that person may have to abide by patient isolation procedures. These include Standard Precautions, Airborne Precautions, Droplet Precautions, and Contact Precautions. These precautions are spelled out in the third edition of Medical Management Of Biological Casualties Handbook published by the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Disease located at Fort Detrick in Frederick, Maryland. 

Weapon of mass destruction Weapon that has the potential of inflicting a mass number of casualties. While the phrase has been used historically to refer to nuclear weapons, it also includes weapons that distribute chemical and/or biological agents. 

Terrorists can choose from countless biological agents and the list can seem overwhelming. However, to best protect our patients and their families, primary care clinicians should focus their attention on the agents that terrorists are most likely to use and that have the greatest potential for mass casualties. The CDC has defined three categories of agents, A, B, and C with potential as weapons, based on several criteria (1) (see Table 2.2) ... 

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