Psychosomatic medicine and biodefense preparedness--a new role for the American Psychosomatic Society

Biodefense preparations in the United States have focused mostly on improving biosurveillance and hospital surge capacity in the event of an outbreak or a weapons of mass destruction (WMD) event. However, what if an invisible bioweapon or dirty bomb was released in a major population center, or if a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychosomatic medicine 2006-09, Vol.68 (5), p.698-705
Main Author: Locke, Steven E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological Warfare
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.)
Culture
Diagnosis, Differential
Disaster Planning - organization & administration
Disease Outbreaks
Evidence-Based Medicine
Explosions
Health Education
Health Services Accessibility
History, 20th Century
History, 21st Century
Locke
Mass Screening - methods
Mass Screening - organization & administration
Mass Screening - psychology
National Institutes of Health (U.S.)
Professional Role
Psychophysiologic Disorders - diagnosis
Psychophysiologic Disorders - epidemiology
Psychophysiologic Disorders - etiology
Psychophysiologic Disorders - psychology
Psychophysiologic Disorders - therapy
Psychosomatic Medicine - history
Psychosomatic Medicine - trends
Public Health
Societies, Medical - history
Societies, Medical - trends
Telemedicine - methods
Telemedicine - organization & administration
Terrorism
Triage - methods
Triage - standards
United States
Warfare
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Summary:Biodefense preparations in the United States have focused mostly on improving biosurveillance and hospital surge capacity in the event of an outbreak or a weapons of mass destruction (WMD) event. However, what if an invisible bioweapon or dirty bomb was released in a major population center, or if avian flu took hold with sustained human to human transmission? Suddenly, we need to combine efforts from psychosomatic medicine and general medicine with public health practice to triage nonexposed patients with somatic symptoms from those with medical sequelae resulting from hazardous exposures. This would better enable the limited acute care resources to be directed to those most in need of urgent medical care. Furthermore, psychosomatic medicine experts are potentially important players in biodefense planning related to risk communication and health education strategies in a WMD scenario or outbreak in which individuals must make informed choices about their need for immediate medical attention.
ISSN:1534-7796