Radiation Health Mgt

Radiation Health Management

Because of the changes in the global paradigm of transportation, politics and foreign policy, there is greater potential for an attack on a major U.S. city -- be it nuclear, biological, or conventional (Wirtz, 2006). There are a number of ways this could occur: delivery through the port system, attacks on transportation facilities, major events (stadiums or arenas), or utility plants. This is particularly worrisome if bacteria or viruses were engineered to be used as weapons that might be engineered to have safer handling, increased virulence, improved ability to target the host, greater difficulty of detection and easier distribution (Johnson, et.al., 2003).

There are multiple issues surrounding any type of disaster such as a nuclear or terrorist strike. In particular the health management issues that would occur with such a scenario are serious and complicated. The first step is risk management from a public health perspective. Basic risk management for any organization encompasses six general parameters" 1) the identification of a risk within the context of the organization or area; 2) Planning some sort of a process to mitigate the situation(s); 3) Mapping, either formally or informally, the scope, objectives, stakeholders, and constraints; 4) Defining a framework for managing the risk(s); 5) Developing a sound analysis of the risks using as many tools as possible; 6) Finding mitigating solutions using all available tools (Wan, 2009; Frenkel, Hommel, & Rudolf, 2005). However, planning for a radiological attack is far different than that of a natural disaster -- largely because of the equipment and unpredictability of the event.

In terms of a radiological attack, there are a number of variables that pertain to the severity of the health issue: size of the payload, placement (e.g. In an enclosed arena or a tall building), weather (wind, temperature, etc.). Most experts agree that the likelhood of a radiological attack would be from a so-called "dirty bomb," one that uses waste materials to disperse radition. In this, the large variety of radioactive materials would vary in terms of intensity and public health danger. If there was a nuclear attack, however, the scenario would be devastating. Terrorists might use weapons ranging from a 1-kiloton (kT) devise the size of a large backpack to a 10- to 20-kT device similar to what was used on Hiroshima in World War II (Tenforde, et.al., 2010).

If there was an actual nuclear detonation, health effects for those in the immediate vicinity would range from instant death to severe burns and radition poisioning. Further from the blast results in lower doses of radition, but at even a small bomb, exposure within the first few hours would likely result in some sort of cellular damage from nervous system shut down to cancers, some of which might take years to develop. Any exposure to the human system will have some effect, the more the fallout and proximity, the greater the effect (Levy and Sidel, 2003).