Medical students learn handling cases caused by CBRNE tragedies

Time of India

3 days ago

Pune: Students of Govt Medical College, Alibaug, attended a first-of-its-kind training programme on handling mass casualties and injuries caused by CBRNE (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive) tragedies.
The content for the two-day workshop was developed by the college under the mentorship of Colonel Santosh K Singh, professor of medicine, Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune, and national coordinator for CBRNE management training.
Dr Deodatt Suryawanshi, assistant professor, GMC, said although this is not part of the syllabus, they wanted to make sure that MBBS students are prepared for any untoward incident.
"Be it a war or the recent chemical factory blast in Telangana, CBRNE training is a must for doctors. However, at present, it is restricted to specialised personnel in the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the armed forces. Such training is not frequent for medical students, despite their potential frontline role in emergencies, especially in peripheral and rural healthcare systems," he said.
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At the programme held on July 1 and 2 on RCF Campus, Alibaug, the students were taught the START (simple triage and rapid treatment) method, colour coding for casualties using triage tags to determine severity, assessing respiration rate, checking radial pulse or capillary refill, evaluating mental status using commands, high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) following AHA guidelines, and use of automated external defibrillator.
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They also practised chest compressions (rate, depth, recoil), rescue breathing, hot zone to cold zone transition (zoning in CBRNE), use of PPE suits for first responders, shower decontamination (dry/wet simulated), safe handling of contaminated material, proper donning and doffing of PPE, use of decontamination stretchers and tents (simulated), and tagging post-decontamination for further triage.
Dr Purwa Patil, dean of GMC, said there is an urgent need for disaster preparedness and skill-based medical training in the wake of increasing manmade and natural emergencies.
"As many as 105 of our MBBS students actively participated in rigorous simulation-based training that covered triage and victim prioritisation in field conditions, standardised decontamination protocols for hazardous exposure, casualty evacuation and scene safety procedures, and CPR and emergency resuscitation in disaster contexts," she said.
Dr Devannad Pawar, associate professor, anaesthesia, GMC, conducted hands-on training in basic life support and CPR — foundational skills for all medical first responders.
"Medical students are expected to respond effectively to mass casualty situations, yet most lack structured exposure to high-risk disaster scenarios involving hazardous materials. This workshop addressed that gap by introducing them to the essential knowledge and skills for CBRNE casualty management," he said.
Such training will help produce a generation of disaster-ready, system-aware, and clinically competent doctors, prepared to protect public health and safety in times of crisis, Dr Patil said.
The workshop was organised by the department of community medicine and the medical education unit of GMC, in collaboration with the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), Raigad. The training was conducted by Sagar Pathak, head of DDMA, senior PI Jalinder Funde of NDRF, M K Mhatre, retired assistant deputy controller, Civil Defence, and Dr (Colonel) V N Supenekar, consultant in hospital disaster management, YASHADA.
Pune: Students of Govt Medical College, Alibaug, attended a first-of-its-kind training programme on handling mass casualties and injuries caused by CBRNE (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive) tragedies. The content for the two-day workshop was developed by the college under the mentorship of Colonel Santosh K Singh, professor of medicine, Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune, and national coordinator for CBRNE management training.
Dr Deodatt Suryawanshi, assistant professor, GMC, said although this is not part of the syllabus, they wanted to make sure that MBBS students are prepared for any untoward incident.
"Be it a war or the recent chemical factory blast in Telangana, CBRNE training is a must for doctors. However, at present, it is restricted to specialised personnel in the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the armed forces. Such training is not frequent for medical students, despite their potential frontline role in emergencies, especially in peripheral and rural healthcare systems," he said.
At the programme held on July 1 and 2 on RCF Campus, Alibaug, the students were taught the START (simple triage and rapid treatment) method, colour coding for casualties using triage tags to determine severity, assessing respiration rate, checking radial pulse or capillary refill, evaluating mental status using commands, high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) following AHA guidelines, and use of automated external defibrillator.
They also practised chest compressions (rate, depth, recoil), rescue breathing, hot zone to cold zone transition (zoning in CBRNE), use of PPE suits for first responders, shower decontamination (dry/wet simulated), safe handling of contaminated material, proper donning and doffing of PPE, use of decontamination stretchers and tents (simulated), and tagging post-decontamination for further triage.
Dr Purwa Patil, dean of GMC, said there is an urgent need for disaster preparedness and skill-based medical training in the wake of increasing manmade and natural emergencies.
"As many as 105 of our MBBS students actively participated in rigorous simulation-based training that covered triage and victim prioritisation in field conditions, standardised decontamination protocols for hazardous exposure, casualty evacuation and scene safety procedures, and CPR and emergency resuscitation in disaster contexts," she said.
Dr Devannad Pawar, associate professor, anaesthesia, GMC, conducted hands-on training in basic life support and CPR — foundational skills for all medical first responders.
"Medical students are expected to respond effectively to mass casualty situations, yet most lack structured exposure to high-risk disaster scenarios involving hazardous materials. This workshop addressed that gap by introducing them to the essential knowledge and skills for CBRNE casualty management," he said.
Such training will help produce a generation of disaster-ready, system-aware, and clinically competent doctors, prepared to protect public health and safety in times of crisis, Dr Patil said.
The workshop was organised by the department of community medicine and the medical education unit of GMC, in collaboration with the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), Raigad. The training was conducted by Sagar Pathak, head of DDMA, senior PI Jalinder Funde of NDRF, M K Mhatre, retired assistant deputy controller, Civil Defence, and Dr (Colonel) V N Supenekar, consultant in hospital disaster management, YASHADA.