On-line Continuing Medical Education Credits (CME)
and Maintenance of Certification Credits (MOC)
Max. 22.5 Credit Hours
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Physician On-Line Readiness Guide:
Until recently, contamination of water with biological,
chemical or radiologic agents generally resulted from natural, industrial
or unintentional man-made accidents. Unfortunately, the medical
community, public health agencies, and water utilities now have to
consider the
possibility of intentional contamination of US water supplies as part
of an organized effort to disrupt and damage important elements of
our national infrastructure. In his 2002 State of the Union Address,
President Bush noted that confiscated Al Qaeda documents included detailed
maps of several US municipal drinking water systems. The National Academy
of Sciences reported to Congress that water supply system contamination
and disruption should be considered a possible terrorist threat in
the U.S. In addition, public apprehension regarding a terrorist assault
on drinking water has also been reinforced by news reports of the arrest
of suspects charged with threatening to poison water supplies in the
US. As a result, there continues to be concern that water may
represent a potential target for terrorist activity and that deliberate
contamination
of water is a potential public health threat.
It should be noted that detection methods for recognizing intentional
contamination of a water supply are improving. However, the most likely
initial indication that a water contamination event has occurred in
a community will be a change in disease trends and illness patterns.
Practicing healthcare providers are likely to be the first
to observe these unusual illness patterns and must understand their
critical role
as "front-line responders" in detecting water-related disease
resulting from biological, chemical or radiological terrorism. Healthcare
practitioners provide an “early detection system” for possible
exposure to weapons of mass destruction -- since humans continue to
remain the most sensitive and often the only “detector” of
a covert terrorist attack on our population. Early recognition, accurate
diagnosis, and conscientious case reporting by community healthcare
providers of suspected waterborne disease cases -- no matter what their
clinical specialty -- will be critical to maintaining water security
and safety and to protecting the nation’s public health in the
future.
Although it is not realistic to believe that healthcare providers can
prevent the first cases of illness resulting from intentional acts
of water terrorism, we could play a critical role in minimizing the
impact of such an event by practicing medicine with a heightened level
of suspicion that such an attack could occur in our community. With
prompt diagnosis, proper management, and collaboration with public
health and water authorities, prepared healthcare professionals may
make the difference between a controlled response to an act of water
terrorism versus a public health crisis. A coordinated and effective
response to acts of water terrorism will depend upon cooperation among
a multidisciplinary team of healthcare providers, public health and
water utility practitioners, law enforcement professionals and community
leaders in order to mitigate the potential impact of an intentional
contamination event.
In order to respond to a potential act of waterborne terrorism,
healthcare providers and public health practitioners must have access
to immediately accessible and constantly updated information. The primary
purpose of this Physician Readiness for Acts of Water Terrorism guide
is to respond to this critical need and to provide comprehensive resources
for healthcare providers and other disaster management professionals
faced with recognizing and managing water-related disease in their
communities. This Physician On-Line Reference Guide provides free access
to more than 550 webpages of clinically relevant information on a “24/7” basis.
During a five year period, this medical website has received
more than 10 million hits for information from over 350,000 visitors
located
in 105 countries and 9 regions and territories. More than 425 organizations
have highlighted and incorporated this medical website as a waterborne
disease medical reference guide and several branches of the US military
have utilized this website. In addition, with sponsorship from the
American College of Preventive Medicine, a 22.5-hour online Continuing
Medical Education (CME) offering has been developed for review of the
content of Physician Preparedness for Acts of Water Terrorism:
A Physician Online Readiness Guide. We trust that this on-line medical reference
guide will provide you and your community with valuable water terrorism
preparedness resources and education.
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last modified on April 13, 2011
