Knowledge and awareness concerning chemical and biological terrorism: continuing education implications.
BACKGROUND
A survey on knowledge and awareness concerning chemical and biological terrorism was used to assess the knowledge base of health care providers at an urban medical center in preparation for developing a workshop on domestic terrorism preparedness. A second survey assessing domestic terrorism preparedness of infection control personnel and nurse educators also was conducted.


METHODS
A total of 291 nurses, physicians, nursing students, and medical students completed the knowledge and awareness survey. A total of 24 infection control personnel and nurse educators completed the second survey on domestic terrorism preparedness.


RESULTS
The knowledge scores of the respondents were low, with less than one fourth of the knowledge questions answered correctly. In addition, less than 23% of the respondents reported confidence to provide health care in a hypothetical chemical terrorism situation.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings indicate a need for nurses in continuing education and staff development to develop, implement, and evaluate innovative domestic terrorism preparedness programs.
Rose
Molly A
MA
Community Systems Administration, Thomas Jefferson University, Jefferson College of Health Professions, Department of Nursing, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA.
Larrimore
Karen L
KL
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001364:Awareness; D023482:Bioterrorism; D002618:Chemical Warfare; D004189:Disaster Planning; D004496:Education, Continuing; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020380:Needs Assessment