The study, found in the peer-reviewed Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, revealed that while emergency departments get an average of 15 cases a year of patients who have come into contact with hazardous materials, many of the hospitals studied lacked the equipment, planning, and training to properly treat patients and keep others safe from contamination.

The investigators found that only 6% of the trauma centers studied had all of the equipment necessary for decontaminating patients exposed to hazardous materials--such as special showers and disposable stethoscopes and blood pressure cuffs. Less than one-third had response plans that fully complied with federal regulations, and just 36% of emergency department staff members had hazardous materials training. The results were even more disturbing because the study looked only at Level 1 trauma centers, the elite units with the most advanced emergency departments.

Many of these advanced hospitals seem to be ''poorly prepared to handle either large or small'' hazardous materials incidents, Pirrallo and his colleagues conclude. They note that the US Department of Defense, faced with potential terrorist threats, is currently educating emergency personnel in dealing with hazardous materials cases. The success of these care units is also vital in the event of a catastrophic accident in the process industries where hazardous materials may affect a wide area.

Source: David P. Ghilarducci, BA, Ronald G. Pirrallo, MD, and Kurt T. Hegmann, MD, MPH, Hazardous Materials Readiness of United States Level 1 Trauma Centers. The Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 42:683 (July 2000).