Hazardous Materials Exposure

The Problem

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have classified emergency response and hospital personnel as high risk groups for exposure to infectious and toxic substances.

The EPA defines a hazardous material as any substance or material in a quantity or form that poses an unreasonable risk to health, safety, and property when transported. This material is extremely hazardous to the community during an emergency spill, or release, as a result of its physical or chemical properties.

The AARC’s Position

• Respiratory therapists must be knowledgeable in treating, reversing, and avoiding the effects of these hazardous materials
• Respiratory therapists must be alert to the potential effects of hazardous materials and be able to support their patients until the effects wear off, or the materials are neutralized
• Respiratory therapists, while providing care, must avoid any of the deleterious effects of the agents to which the patients have been exposed
• The AARC supports efforts toward an epidemiological approach to the prevention of hazardous material exposure
• The AARC supports the institutional development of appropriate hazardous material exposure guidelines that adhere to standards from both the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations
• The AARC encourages and endorses the inclusion and participation of respiratory therapists in the development of a community-wide plan for the management of exposure to hazardous materials

Bibliography

Burgess JL, Keifer MC, Barnhart S, Richardson M, Robertson WO. Hazardous materials exposure information service: Development, analysis, and medical implications. Ann Emerg Med 1997;29(2):248-254.

Cos RD. Decontamination and management of hazardous materials exposure victims in the emergency department. Ann Emerg Med 1994;23(4):761-770.

Kales SN, Polyhronopoulos GN, Castro MJ, Goldman RH, Christiani DC. Injuries caused by hazardous materials accidents. Ann Emerg Med 1997;30(5):598-603.

Kirk MA, Cisek J, Rose SR. Emergency department response to hazardous materials incidents. Emerg Med Clinics of North America 1994;12(2):461-468.

Occupational Health & Safety Administration. Occupational Safety & Health Act. Hazardous waster operations and emergency response. 1970. 29-CFR 1910-120. Washington, DC.

EPA web site www.epa.gov

Note: Much material is courtesy of the Emergency Nurses Association.

Effective 5/7/02