Human Decontamination | Human Decontamination Neutralizes Harmful Diseases

Tuesday March 31, 2009 - Human decontamination refers to the process of cleansing the body to remove or neutralize a biohazard an individual has been exposed to, or is suspected of having been exposed to. The goal of human decontamination is to prevent further harm to the body and increase the individual's chance for a full recovery.

Chemical, biological, radioactive and hazardous materials can cause terrible casualties when released into the environment. There are two likely scenarios where human decontamination would be necessary. The first involves the accidental release of a chemical or other hazard that comes in contact with individuals. The second, and most feared, scenario involves the intentional release of chemical agents to terrorize a population. In either case, people exposed to harmful materials would require human decontamination.

In 1995, a domestic terrorist attack on the Tokyo subway occurred which involved the release of sarin gas, a nerve agent estimated to be 500 times more toxic than cyanide. This event caused massive disruption and resulted in the death of 12 people and more than 6,000 related injuries. Many individuals were contaminated by helping victims on the trains, including other passengers and health care workers. The lack of facilities and protocols for handling human decontamination resulted in secondary exposure for many responders, and highlighted the need for communities and health care organizations worldwide to develop strategies to deal with similar catastrophes.

Many facilities, such as hospitals, currently have in place procedures to manage human decontamination in the event of a large-scale terrorist attack. Los Angeles World Airports have implemented a plan to decontaminate as many as 10,000 persons who may have been exposed to a dangerous chemical or biological threat.

In a situation where large numbers of people have been contaminated by a hazardous agent, human decontamination takes place on a mass scale. In this scenario, those who are suspected of being contaminated are first separated according to sex, then led into a “decon” tent or trailer. All clothing, shoes and personal items are removed and bagged for evidence, due to the fact that those responsible for a terrorist act could be among the victims. Next, individuals enter a washdown room where they are thoroughly showered. In the last room, they are dried and given new clothing.

Human decontamination is a vital tool for saving lives in the event of any kind of chemical or biological emergency, on both a small and large scale. Please contact Biotrauma for more information about this topic, or for further information on our human decontamination services in the event of emergency.

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