title: Mercury, 101.
abstract: October 3, 2003, The Washington Post--Students steal a 250-milliliter container of mercury from a science lab and spread it around the school and grounds. As of October 28, 2003, the school has been shut down and decontaminated, five people showed some type of mercury exposure, more than 100 homes were tested and found contaminated, families were told to leave with the clothes on their backs, city buses were cleaned due to mercury contamination, 1,300 students were displaced and in temporary classrooms, and the cleanup and investigation costs are in the millions and still climbing. As the community nurse, would you know the health risks and could you assist students, parents, and educators?
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Nursing, Pitman, NJ 08071-0056, USA.
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pike-Paris
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D002614:Chelating Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003152:Community Health Nursing / Q000379:methods; D003666:Decontamination / Q000379:methods; D004112:Dimercaprol / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D062665:Epidemiological Monitoring; D006801:Humans; D007255:Information Services; D019570:Inhalation Exposure; D020407:Internet; D008487:Medical History Taking; D008630:Mercury Poisoning / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D024802:Nurse's Role; D009730:Nursing Assessment; D010351:Patient Discharge; D010371:Pediatric Nursing / Q000379:methods; D011322:Primary Prevention / Q000379:methods; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012869:Skin Absorption
chemical_list: D002614:Chelating Agents; D004112:Dimercaprol