Traumatology

 

Advanced Search

Journal Navigation

Journal Home

Subscriptions

Archive

Contact Us

Table of Contents

Register here to gain access to SAGE's 500+ Journals Online

Click here to sign up for SAGE Journal Email Alerts today!

Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Saved Citations
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Request Reprints
Right arrow Add to My Marked Citations
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Beaton, R.
Right arrow Articles by Thomas, T.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati  
What's this?
Traumatology, Vol. 11, No. 2, 103-119 (2005)
DOI: 10.1177/153476560501100205

The Sarin Gas Attacks on the Tokyo Subway - 10 years later/Lessons Learned

Randal Beaton

University of Washington, randyb{at}u.washington.edu

Andy Stergachis

University of Washington

Mark Oberle

University of Washington

Elizabeth Bridges

University of Washington

Marcus Nemuth

Veterans Affairs Administration of Puget Sound

Tamlyn Thomas

University of Washington Medical Center

This paper considers "lessons learned" from the March 20, 1995 covert terrorist attack on the Tokyo, Japan subway system employing a neurotoxic agent. The following lessons from this disaster are reviewed in light of prevailing practice and policy in the U.S. in 2005: timely communication of vital information; operational logistics including triage, surge capacity and decontamination; secondary contamination of emergency responders and hospital personnel; assessment and treatment of the "worried well"; secondary traumatization of rescue workers; and behavioral health preparedness measures and treatment for disaster victims. In some respects little progress has been made, for instance, in developing new, evidence-based therapies for disaster victims with posttraumatic stress disorder. On the other hand, some recently developed and implemented initiatives such as the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), represent enhancements to U.S. preparedness compared to that which existed during the 1995 terrorist attacks on the Tokyo, Japan subway system.

Key Words: Mass casualty event • Neurotoxic agent • "Worried well" • Psychological First Aid • Posttraumatic Stress Disorder


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?