Firefighters' and Emergency Medical Service Personnel's Knowledge and Training on Radiation Exposures and Safety: Results from a Survey

Awareness and preparedness level of medical workers for radiation and nuclear emergency response

Radiological science and nuclear technology have made great strides in the twenty-first century, with wide-ranging applications in various fields, including energy, medicine, and industry. However, those developments have been accompanied by the inherent risks of exposure to nuclear radiation, which is a source of concern owing to its potentially adverse effects on human health and safety and which is of particular relevance to medical personnel who may be exposed to certain cancers associated with low-dose radiation in their working environment. While medical radiation workers have seen a decrease in their occupational exposure since the 1950s thanks to improved measures for radiation protection, a concerning lack of understanding and awareness persists among medical professionals regarding these potential hazards and the required safety precautions. This issue is further compounded by insufficient capabilities in emergency response. This highlights the urgent need to strengthen radiation safety education and training to ensure the well-being of medical staff who play a critical role in radiological and nuclear emergencies. This review examines the health hazards of nuclear radiation to healthcare workers and the awareness and willingness and education of healthcare workers on radiation protection, calling for improved training programs and emergency response skills to mitigate the risks of radiation exposure in the occupational environment, providing a catalyst for future enhancement of radiation safety protocols and fostering of a culture of safety in the medical community.

Sports-related injuries sustained by officers of the State Fire Service on duty - nationwide 7-year follow-up

Aim

The accident rate in the State Fire Service from 2015 to 2021 related to sports activities was analyzed in relation to the regions of the country per year.

Materials and methods

The study included analysis of data from the SFS Headquarters - Department for Occupational Health and Safety and Preventive Health. Data collected from across the country in the form of an annual analysis of the accident. The reports included such information as: the number of accidents, the cause and circumstances of accident (injury), with a breakdown listing individual and group accidents.

Results

During the observation period, about 30,000 officers were on duty in the SFS, of which about 20% were on daily (8-h) duty, and 80% were on shift (24-h) duty. Between 2015 and 2021, there were N = 11,332 (Mean: 1617.4; SD: 284.1) accidents in SFS. Total accident covers individual and mass accidents. The number of sports injuries was N = 4,254 (Mean: 532.2; SD: 137.9).

Conclusion

There is a need for comprehensive approach to physical training in the firefighter population. Physical activity should be continuous and systematic strengthening of the whole body. Sports activities should begin with performing thorough warm-ups. It is necessary to maintain facilities, premises, equipment and technical devices in a condition that sets the ground for doing sports safely and in a hygienic manner. Most of the sports injuries sustained by firefighters are related to team sports.

The Gap in Insurance Liability for Blood and Research Gamma Irradiators

ABSTRACT

In 2019, a federal contractor accidently breached a 2,900 Ci 137 Cs sealed source while decommissioning it from a University of Washington research building, releasing a single digit curie of its contents. This event contaminated 13 people as well as all seven floors of the research building, which housed the radiation source. Estimates for clean-up costs and lost revenue exceeded $150 million. The magnitude of this cost prompted licensees in possession of such radioactive sources to question whether their insurance coverage is adequate to cover a large-scale incident and if coverage for such exposure even exists. In this article, we identify potential gaps in commercially available insurance policies by evaluating and assessing associated risks, damages, and accountability. While insurance can mitigate the expense associated with remediation, it is unlikely that sufficient limits would exist to fully protect healthcare institutions from direct financial liability in the event that their radioactive sources are implicated in a nuclear, chemical, biological, or radiological (NCBR) (sometimes called CBRN in other literature) mass contamination event. This paper seeks to outline how the risks and liability to healthcare institutions having such gamma irradiators can be reduced significantly by removing them rather than seeking to insure against the cost of remediation in the event of a leak and/or mass contamination. As such, licensees are encouraged to check their policies for the correct coverage and make sure any coverage restriction is removed from their policies. In addition, licensees are also encouraged to explore financial incentives offered by the US government programs to not only dispose of their present gamma irradiator sources at no cost but also to provide financial support to replace them with alternative technologies.

Basic concepts of radiation emergency medicine

Nuclear and radiological accidents are not frequent but may lead to major consequences in the population. For the health systems, the need to handle a large number of victims will probably remain as an exception. However, a high number of affected victims can be expected in some terrorist scenarios. In addition, medical accidents in radiotherapy, fluoroscopy and diagnostic radiology have increased the number of patients with severe radiation injuries considerably, especially in developed countries. Given the increased use of ionising radiation for industrial and medical purposes and new technological applications emerging, the number of accidents may increase in the future. Consequently, the early identification and adequate management of these emergencies is a priority, as well as the need for medical preparedness, requiring knowledge about various emergency scenarios and planning appropriate responses to them before they occur. Unfortunately, medical professionals have a substantial knowledge gap in identifying and treating injured persons affected by ionising radiation. As managing radiation accidents is a very challenging process, exercises must be carried out to organise a well-trained multidisciplinary group of professionals to manage any radiation accident properly. Efforts on a continuously updated guidance system should be developed. In addition, new approaches to foster sustainable interdisciplinary and international cooperative networks on radiation injuries are necessary. Lessons learned from past nuclear and radiological emergencies have significantly contributed to strengthening scientific knowledge and increasing the available medical information on the effects of ionising radiation in the human body. In this context, radiation emergency medicine has emerged as a discipline that contributes to the diagnosis, treatment, medical follow-up and prognosis of persons affected by radiation injuries in a nuclear or a radiological emergency. In this paper, we review some relevant concepts related to the medical preparedness and multidisciplinary response required to attend to persons affected by these emergencies.

The importance of pre-training gap analyses and the identification of competencies and skill requirements of medical personnel for mass casualty incidents and disaster training

Background

Effective preparedness to respond to mass casualty incidents and disasters requires a well-planned and integrated effort by all involved professionals, particularly those who are working in healthcare, who are equipped with unique knowledge and skills for emergencies. This study aims to investigate and evaluate the level of knowledge and skills related to mass casualty and disaster management in a cohort of healthcare professionals.

Methods

A cross-sectional brief study was conducted using a validated and anonymous questionnaire, with a sample of 134 employees at a clinical hospital in Lublin, Poland.

Results

The findings of this study may indicate a need for standardization of training for hospitals employees. It also suggests a knowledge gap between different professional groups, which calls for adjusting such general training, to at least, the weakest group, while special tasks and mission can be given to other groups within the training occasion.

Conclusion

Pre-Training gap analyses and identification of participants’ competencies and skills should be conducted prior to training in mass casualty incidents and disasters. Such analyses provides an opportunity to develop training curriculum at various skill and knowledge levels from basic to advance. All training in mass casualty incidents and disasters should be subject to ongoing, not just periodic, evaluation, in order to assess continued competency.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-021-10165-5.

Factors associated with the intention to participate in activities during a nuclear disaster situation among firefighters

Willingness to participate in activities during a nuclear disaster situation among firefighters is low. Thus, we aimed to identify the factors affecting the intention to participate in nuclear disaster activities. A questionnaire survey was conducted among firefighter training students (n = 186) and firefighters (n = 410), and a multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors affecting the intention to participate in nuclear disaster activities. The percentage of students and firefighters who were willing to participate in nuclear disaster activities was 70.4% (n = 131) and 56.3% (n = 231) (P < 0.01), respectively. The factors affecting the students' intention to participant were "wish to learn more information about radiation" and "firefighters should actively work in a nuclear disaster." Meanwhile, the factors affecting the firefighters' intention to work were "have self-confidence during nuclear disaster activities," "participate if there is an incentive," "unable to get a family member to understand the need to participate in a nuclear disaster activity," and marital status. A student's decision might be strongly connected to social norms about participating in nuclear disaster activities. The willingness to participate in nuclear disaster activities among firefighters might be improved by facilitating activities that can build their self-confidence, providing sufficient incentives, and helping their families understand their work. Therefore, not only direct education for responders but also educational activities for the general public and their families are essential.