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AAP: Medical disaster preparedness falls short; improvements needed
The AAP’s Disaster Preparedness Advisory Council said voids exist in medical countermeasures to disaster hazards and offered recommendations for improvement in the case of a national medical emergency, according to a policy statement in Pediatrics.
“This policy statement provides recommendations to close the remaining gaps for the development and use of [medical countermeasures (MCM)] in children during public health emergencies or disasters,” Daniel B. Fagbuyi, MD, FAAP, medical director, disaster preparedness and emergency management, Children’s National Medical Center, and colleagues wrote.
According to the statement, a 2010 telephone survey of 1,030 U.S. residents piloted by the AAP and Children’s Health Fund found that the majority of people supported children receiving priority over adults during medical emergencies. However, current national preparedness measures are lacking in regards to the needs of children in the event of a public health emergency, disaster or act of terrorism.
The policy statement authors highlighted multiple areas where MCM are currently failing to meet children’s needs. Emergency caches of vaccines and medicine currently contain adult-only doses and mostly nonliquid forms of medicine, making their distribution difficult and unsafe for children. The authors also noted that emergency protocol to expedite the approval of treatments not currently indicated for children is a positive step, but additional research is required to avoid unintended harms to children during emergencies.
The statement recommended several changes, including:
- requiring local governments to maintain adequate amounts of child-appropriate medical supplies;
- collaboration between industry leaders to research and develop child-safe treatments for use during medical emergencies;
- avoiding exposing children to hazardous treatments, while ensuring their emergency medical needs are met;
- taking the needs of children and families into account during any emergency protocol planning;
- including information and instructions for how to safely administer emergency treatments to children within supply stockpiles; and
- providing pediatric health professionals with the appropriate information needed to treat children in the event of public disaster.
“Children represent nearly a quarter of the U.S. population, but they are affected disproportionately by most disasters and public health emergencies,” Fagbuyi and colleagues wrote. “The recommendations outlined in this statement should be used to guide pediatricians; federal, state, and local government agencies; and others in addressing this need.” – by David Costill
Reference:
AAP. Marist College Institute for Public Opinion. AAP National Survey October 2010. Available at: www.aap.org/en-us/advocacy-and-policy/aap-health-initiatives/Children-and-Disasters/Documents/AAP-Opinion-Poll-Data-Oct2010.pdf. Accessed January 8, 2016.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
