Practicing nurses will be trained on all aspects of ER medical triage, clinical differential diagnostic techniques and hospital processing of mass casualties after WMD pathogen release incident.

Students will become skilled in full contact work with non-contagious and contagious patients during partial and full quarantine. Practicing nurses will learn principles of epidemiology and practices of epidemiological control of infectious outbreaks and hospital tactics during quarantine as well as personal and hospital protection during contact work with contagious patients. They will become skilled in biological monitoring and detection of different spectrums of bacterial/rickettsial and viral pathogens and their decontamination inside/outside hospital setting.

Nursing staff will learn universal and specifics of hospital precautions during work with low/high contagious patients. Students will understand different levels of PPE, scheduling, rotations of medical staff during quarantine, as well as learning about organization of medical supplies for casualty collection areas. Organization of the hot/ warm/cold zones of the decontamination line will be demonstrated. A hands-on drill will help nurses to learn proper deactivation techniques and nursing care of patients.

Advanced course for hospital nursing units: Strategies and tactics for medical personnel during quarantine, and principles and practices of preventive/current and final deactivation of hospitals who are dealing with mass casualties after WMD anthrax/plague release in the urban areas.

Principles of hospital work and nursing care during pre, current and post care of the contagious mass casualties after a WMD biological event. More in-depth information on the pathology of main biological agents and their epidemiological properties after they are released in an urban area. They also learn principles of decontamination of the medical equipment and clothing as well as personal isolation precautions. Hands-on activities showing disinfections of skin, deactivation of agents from contaminated fluids, and sampling principles. The class will train on principles of current deactivation of anthrax/plague microorganisms during full contact medical care of the patients.

Nurses will understand their involvement in organization of isolation nursing units inside casualty collection zones (CCZ) and temporary/prominent nursing areas inside the hospital for collection, isolation and treatment of the patients. They will learn proper contamination control of floors and departments inside the hospital.

Students will learn nursing shifts and necessary medical procedures during contact work with infected patients.

This course will provide practicing nurses with a tactical tools and hands-on training for proper medical response during a large-scale chemical/toxin related man-made incident.

Practicing nurses in hospitals will learn about chemical properties of main military chemical agents, their pathophysiology and intracellular actions, as well as principles of contact nursing care with contaminated patients during a mass casualty response. They will understand the principles of clinical differential diagnosis of main chemical intoxications and specific procedures during nursing care as well as proper nursing rotations during contact work with contaminated mass casualties.

Practicing nurses will learn principles of medical treatment and understand patient complications and concerns and will be trained on all aspects of ER secondary medical triage and emergency processing of small/middle/large casualties after WMD Chemical terrorist related incident. Students will be able to recognize/analyze and remove hazardous chemicals in liquid/solid/gaseous forms from contaminated surfaces and victims during decontamination and they will be able to diagnose and properly differentiate patients with early and late developing symptoms caused by chemical intoxication. Nurses will be taught to recognize symptoms of a single chemical agent as well as symptoms of combinational release of militarized chemicals after WMD event.

Hospital nursing staff will also learn how to process mass casualties coming from the hot zone, establishment of casualty collection areas (CCA) near the hospital. They will learn about organization of necessary stockpiles of medical equipment, antidotes/antitoxins, and pharmaceutical drugs for first medical intervention and planning treatment of the victims. They will also be taught principles of skin/wounds/burns decontamination as well as inhalation hazard from aerosol dispersion of the different classes of the chemicals and toxins. Students will learn late effects of the different agents on organs /systems and specifics of nursing care based on these effects of chemical agents as well as principles and tactics for nursing care of mass casualties inside CCA.

A hands-on drill will help students learn personal survey techniques of victims with the presence of external/internal chemical/toxin contamination and help identify problems and concerns in regarding contamination inside their own facility.