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The National Center for Biomedical Research and Training at Louisiana State University offers DHS-certified courses covered under the NCBRT’s Homeland Security National Training Program Cooperative Agreement. As a DHS primary training provider, the NCBRT can offer this vital training at no direct cost to your agency. Please contact us at info@ncbrt.lsu.edu or 1-877-829-8550 to schedule a course through your state administrative agency, or visit www.ncbrt.lsu.edu to learn more about the NCBRT’s training opportunities. Remember, the time to prepare is now!

Emergency Response to Domestic Biological Incidents

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This course is designed to address fundamentals associated with emergency response to biological incidents. It provides detailed technical information and includes hands-on practice of actions required of emergency responders and medical personnel in biological incident situations. The course provides a brief overview of the terrorist threat that now faces the United States; biological agents that could be used by terrorists in executing their attacks; methods of protection from biological agents (with an emphasis on protection using methods and equipment readily available to most emergency responders); and tactics for identifying the presence of a potential biological threat, responding to an incident, and supporting law enforcement operations at the incident scene.

The course also supports the necessity for teamwork (Incident Command/Unified Command) among all responding agencies and actions that law enforcement personnel can take to support and facilitate the operations of fire and medical services and other responding agencies. In summary, the course prepares representatives of state and local emergency response agencies to perform safely and effectively during an incident involving biological agents.

Course Objectives
At the end of this course, participants will be able to:
• Define biological events in the context of their history
• Identify biological agents that may be used in bioterrorism and describe their characteristics as well as the diseases they cause
• Identify key components of biowarfare and bioterrorism through the discussion of delivery methods, dissemination devices, effectiveness of agent preparation, and environmental conditions
• Identify and describe contemporary and emerging threats
• Describe a process of conducting and quantifying vulnerability assessments with emphasis on biological weapons attack
• Identify the components of the National Incident Management System (NIMS), Incident Command System (ICS), and the National Response Framework (NRF) and describe their impact on emergency response to acts of terrorism and natural disasters
• Identify and describe emergency response strategies and responder roles and responsibilities for biological incidents
• Explain how management systems and healthcare facilities function as an integrated component during public health emergency response operations to biological incidents
• Identify the changes in terrorist activity and how these changes affect emergency planning

Target Audience/Discipline
EMS, EMA, FS, GA, HC, HZ, LE, PH, PSC, PW

Scheduling
Contact a NCBRT training coordinator today to schedule this course.

Min/Max Enrollment Min 20; Max 30

Hours 24.0

Format Instructor-Led Training (Direct Delivery)

DHS Course # PER-220

Prerequisites
• Be a mid-level supervisor or emergency responder and/or planner who is responsible for responding to WMD incidents
• Have a picture ID (preferably agency-issued)
• Successfully completed a WMD Awareness-level training course
• Assigned to a supervisory position or a position responsible for development and delivery of training focused on responding to a biological incident; or assignment to a supervisory or management position responsible for the development of departmental policies and procedures governing the actions of emergency responders during WMD incidents
• Sufficient tenure remaining in their current or future position to allow for the application of course material upon their return
• Completion of ICS 700 recommended