Radiologists: The Unsuspecting Subject Matter Experts

The social and political climates are changing rapidly in the United States and the world at large. The threat of a chemical, biologic, radiologic, and/or nuclear event is a rising concern to many. The current Ebola crisis has shed light on health care providers' preparedness for such an event. Radiologists, including radiation oncologists, nuclear medicine specialists, and all radiology subspecialists are considered "subject matter experts" in this area and are likely to be called upon in response to a radiation incident. Although others, such as radiation safety officers, provide important expertise, the clinical leadership will be the responsibility of physicians and other health care providers. However, many radiologists are unaware that they are considered subject matter experts who may be called on to assist, should their local hospital's emergency department need to take care of casualties from a radiation incident. A mass-casualty situation with hundreds of patients would require the immediate assistance of all available medical providers. Radiologists are primed and positioned to take the lead in ensuring preparedness of their local hospital and community, through emergency planning for a radiologic incident, given their combined medical and radiation physics knowledge. Therefore, increasing the skills of radiologists first is the more prudent approach in such planning. This preparation can be done through understanding of the critical components of such scenarios: the threat, types of radiation incidents, contamination, detection, decontamination, and acute radiation syndrome and its treatment. Once the necessary knowledge supplementation has been completed, radiologists can participate in educating their fellow medical colleagues and health care staff; and assist in the radiation-related aspects of an "all hazards" emergency department response, decreasing "radiophobia" in the process.