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The Pharmacist in Disaster Preparedness and Control
frontline for pharmacy • • • • the pharmacist 1n
disaster preparedness and control by John E. Preston and T. W. Schwarz*
T
he arrival of missiles and nuclear explosives has caused a more profound change in the concepts and technology of warfare than has taken place in the 1,100 years since the invention of gunpowder. Until the introduction of the airplane as a weapon-carrier, active warfare was essentially confined to the areas in which troops operated. Civilians became participants and victims of warfare only when they happened to live in frontline territory. The missile with its extreme range, the nuclear explosive with its vast radius of destruction and the possibility of almost universal fall-out have wiped out the demarcation between fighting frontline and civilian hinterland. Mobilization for a future war cannot wait until an act of warfare is committed. The nation which can convert from a peace to a war footing in the shortest time will gain the initial advantage in a future war and will win. This paraphrased remark, which originates from Viscount Montgomery, is indisputable. In addition to technical preparation, the central planning by government and the preparedness of the people are the most decisive factors for survival if war ever strikes again. In the many carefully laid plans for disaster control, the role of the pharmacist has always been the same. Essentially he is scheduled to be in charge of medical supplies. When it comes to informing people about the dangers of nuclear, chemical or biological warfare, it is common experience for everybody to look to someone else to do it and finally the government ends up with the responsibility. The preparation of a whole nation, however, cannot be done from any single source such as an agency of the government. Only he who knows the
extent of nuclear disaster is motivated to prepare himself. To acquaint 170180 million Americans with the possibilities of nuclear and other warfare and the chances for survival, requires many thousands of instructors and many thousands of well-distributed places of instruction. That is where the pharmacist enters. Unlike members of other professions involved in the disa~ter preparedness planning, pharmacists are scattered in their distribution- they are in the highly congested downtown areas, in industrial, residential and rural districts. Their distribution is fairly uniform- they do not congregate in office buildings, hospitals or factories. There is about one pharmacist for every 1,500 people and the total number of practicing pharmacists is about 110,000. It has been estimated that approxi-
This counter displa y rack and a supply of civil defense preparedness wallet cards are available at no charge from the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization, Publications Distribution Office, Battle Creek,. Michigan. For display purposes, several large four-color posters are also available at no cost from Battle Creek. They include a 22· inch by 11 -inch poster, "Protect Yourself from Fallout," and a 21-inch by 11 inch poster, "Shelter- Your One Defense Against Fallout." See page 650 for a list of leaflets a lso ava ilable from OCDM.
*
Presented at the Practical Section , APHA Cincinnati meeting, August. 1959. John E. Preston of Preston's Prescription Pharmacy in Napa, California, is chairman of the California Pharmaceutical Association's civil defense committee, while co-author T. Werner Schwar z is associate professor of pharmacy and pharmaceutical chemistry at the University of California school of pharmacy, San Francisco, California. Both authors hold the PhD degree.
644
JOURNAL O F THE AMERICAN PHARMACEUTICA[ ASSOCIATION
mately 150 million people enter pharmacies or drugstores in the United States each week. An additional number of people pass by drugstore windows where suitable displays can arrest t heir attention and invite t hem to go inside for furt her information. Thus, a larger portion of the population can be reached regularly and repeatedly through contacts with pharmacists than by any other means. Because the pharmacist meets people individually, his participation in a well-planned and centrally supported educational program for disaster preparedness can be expected to be most effective. If the pharmacies in the country become centers of information tor disaster preparedness and reserve a small space for suitable displays, pharmacy will have dramatized its concern for the welfare and survival of the
Unpacking medical supplies and s urgical instruments du ri ng a typical emergency hospital exercise.
nation. No other profession has made such an educational move, nor can it do so as effectively. Making window or store displays available to call attention to the need for more knowledge on how to survive in case of war can enhance the prestige of the profession and its members. The public's health is pharmacy's concern and nothing can prove it more eloquently than the pharmacist's donating space and time to a continuous campaign for a greater awareness of the dangers of modern warfare, especially in the underemphasized biological and chemical aspects of it, and the means to survive. There should be no question but that the pharmacist is eminently qualified to serve as a source of information. Because of his wide educational background, which includes such subjects as physics, chemistry, physiology, pharmacology and bacteriology, he is in a position to augment the general information which may be contained in displays, posters and pamphlets. The public has confidence in the ability and integrity of the pharmacist and his profession and this respect is an effective aid in underscoring the importance of the displayed information and in reassuring the people that protection is, indeed, possible. Through his efforts, the pharmacist can help to remove the general inertia and often fatalistic attitude of the population with regard to disaster preparedness
and may, in the end, bestir the government to take more action. Such a program can, indeed, be carried out by individual pharmacists, but if it is to be effective in arousing the people, as well as in raising the prestige of the whole profession, it needs to be instigated and carried out on a national scale. This requires the very active support of the pharmaceutical organizations and the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization. Because of the key role which individual pharmacists can play in their communities, leaders of professional groups, particularly the AMERICAN PHARMACEUTICAL ASSOCIATION, should become the catalysts in the creation of an active organization in conjunction with the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization. There is a tremendous volume of pertinent information which has to be readied for distribution. Along with the dissemination of available and new material, seminars should be sponsored to instruct the pharmacist so that he can pass on the information effectively to the people. The pharmacist himself must be willing to spend some time in learning about modern warfare and defenses against it. Without strong support from a central, national agency, however, not much progress can be expected. We believe that the plan is simple and the cost of carrying it out-that
is, preparing posters, pamphlets, display aids and seminars for the orientation of pharmacists-relatively small. By making a large variety of exhibits available, a pharmacy may change window and gondola displays from time to time without repeating the same material. Establishing information centers on disaster preparedness in pharmacies creates certain responsibilities for the pharmacist which he must be prepared to meet. Up to now he has been rarely considered a full-fledged partner of the civil defense team but soon he will be invited to join committees on civil and disaster mobilization, created and manned for the most part by physicians with or without the participation of a few public health representatives. His participation in these joint committees will bring him into close contact with other members of the health professions where his activities and efforts can enhance their opinion of pharmacy as a profession. Committee work requires time, which should not be considered in dollars lost, but rather as intangible profits resulting from an increase in respect from both professional and lay people. A committee composed of representatives of the health professions has been in existence for several months in the San Francisco Bay area. Brought together through the initiative of the California State Department of Publi<' Health and the school of public health at the University of California, the committee meets once a month. Out of these meetings have come plans for the utilization of members of all the health professions; communication problems in the case of disaster have been discussed and plans set up to meet them. Another committee was formed through the initiative of the Medical Society of two Bay area counties. This committee, composed mostly of physicians, collaborated with local civil defense representatives and held three mock disaster exercises which yielded valuable information on civil defense plans. Neither of these committees, however, has done what we have specifically suggested here-make the pharmacist the training and information officer for the population at large and use his unique training for a major attack on the ignorance and inertia of the people in matters of modern warfare. No one can force the pharmacist to do this, but if he elects to do so and can get the organizational support of the pharmaceutical associations, the pharmacist will make a major contribution to the welfare of the people and our country and, in the process, receive an inestimable boost of recognition by professional and lay people alike. •
VOL. 21, NO. 1 0, OCTOBER 1960 / PRACTICAL PHARMACY EDITION
645
disaster preparedness and control by John E. Preston and T. W. Schwarz*
T
he arrival of missiles and nuclear explosives has caused a more profound change in the concepts and technology of warfare than has taken place in the 1,100 years since the invention of gunpowder. Until the introduction of the airplane as a weapon-carrier, active warfare was essentially confined to the areas in which troops operated. Civilians became participants and victims of warfare only when they happened to live in frontline territory. The missile with its extreme range, the nuclear explosive with its vast radius of destruction and the possibility of almost universal fall-out have wiped out the demarcation between fighting frontline and civilian hinterland. Mobilization for a future war cannot wait until an act of warfare is committed. The nation which can convert from a peace to a war footing in the shortest time will gain the initial advantage in a future war and will win. This paraphrased remark, which originates from Viscount Montgomery, is indisputable. In addition to technical preparation, the central planning by government and the preparedness of the people are the most decisive factors for survival if war ever strikes again. In the many carefully laid plans for disaster control, the role of the pharmacist has always been the same. Essentially he is scheduled to be in charge of medical supplies. When it comes to informing people about the dangers of nuclear, chemical or biological warfare, it is common experience for everybody to look to someone else to do it and finally the government ends up with the responsibility. The preparation of a whole nation, however, cannot be done from any single source such as an agency of the government. Only he who knows the
extent of nuclear disaster is motivated to prepare himself. To acquaint 170180 million Americans with the possibilities of nuclear and other warfare and the chances for survival, requires many thousands of instructors and many thousands of well-distributed places of instruction. That is where the pharmacist enters. Unlike members of other professions involved in the disa~ter preparedness planning, pharmacists are scattered in their distribution- they are in the highly congested downtown areas, in industrial, residential and rural districts. Their distribution is fairly uniform- they do not congregate in office buildings, hospitals or factories. There is about one pharmacist for every 1,500 people and the total number of practicing pharmacists is about 110,000. It has been estimated that approxi-
This counter displa y rack and a supply of civil defense preparedness wallet cards are available at no charge from the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization, Publications Distribution Office, Battle Creek,. Michigan. For display purposes, several large four-color posters are also available at no cost from Battle Creek. They include a 22· inch by 11 -inch poster, "Protect Yourself from Fallout," and a 21-inch by 11 inch poster, "Shelter- Your One Defense Against Fallout." See page 650 for a list of leaflets a lso ava ilable from OCDM.
*
Presented at the Practical Section , APHA Cincinnati meeting, August. 1959. John E. Preston of Preston's Prescription Pharmacy in Napa, California, is chairman of the California Pharmaceutical Association's civil defense committee, while co-author T. Werner Schwar z is associate professor of pharmacy and pharmaceutical chemistry at the University of California school of pharmacy, San Francisco, California. Both authors hold the PhD degree.
644
JOURNAL O F THE AMERICAN PHARMACEUTICA[ ASSOCIATION
mately 150 million people enter pharmacies or drugstores in the United States each week. An additional number of people pass by drugstore windows where suitable displays can arrest t heir attention and invite t hem to go inside for furt her information. Thus, a larger portion of the population can be reached regularly and repeatedly through contacts with pharmacists than by any other means. Because the pharmacist meets people individually, his participation in a well-planned and centrally supported educational program for disaster preparedness can be expected to be most effective. If the pharmacies in the country become centers of information tor disaster preparedness and reserve a small space for suitable displays, pharmacy will have dramatized its concern for the welfare and survival of the
Unpacking medical supplies and s urgical instruments du ri ng a typical emergency hospital exercise.
nation. No other profession has made such an educational move, nor can it do so as effectively. Making window or store displays available to call attention to the need for more knowledge on how to survive in case of war can enhance the prestige of the profession and its members. The public's health is pharmacy's concern and nothing can prove it more eloquently than the pharmacist's donating space and time to a continuous campaign for a greater awareness of the dangers of modern warfare, especially in the underemphasized biological and chemical aspects of it, and the means to survive. There should be no question but that the pharmacist is eminently qualified to serve as a source of information. Because of his wide educational background, which includes such subjects as physics, chemistry, physiology, pharmacology and bacteriology, he is in a position to augment the general information which may be contained in displays, posters and pamphlets. The public has confidence in the ability and integrity of the pharmacist and his profession and this respect is an effective aid in underscoring the importance of the displayed information and in reassuring the people that protection is, indeed, possible. Through his efforts, the pharmacist can help to remove the general inertia and often fatalistic attitude of the population with regard to disaster preparedness
and may, in the end, bestir the government to take more action. Such a program can, indeed, be carried out by individual pharmacists, but if it is to be effective in arousing the people, as well as in raising the prestige of the whole profession, it needs to be instigated and carried out on a national scale. This requires the very active support of the pharmaceutical organizations and the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization. Because of the key role which individual pharmacists can play in their communities, leaders of professional groups, particularly the AMERICAN PHARMACEUTICAL ASSOCIATION, should become the catalysts in the creation of an active organization in conjunction with the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization. There is a tremendous volume of pertinent information which has to be readied for distribution. Along with the dissemination of available and new material, seminars should be sponsored to instruct the pharmacist so that he can pass on the information effectively to the people. The pharmacist himself must be willing to spend some time in learning about modern warfare and defenses against it. Without strong support from a central, national agency, however, not much progress can be expected. We believe that the plan is simple and the cost of carrying it out-that
is, preparing posters, pamphlets, display aids and seminars for the orientation of pharmacists-relatively small. By making a large variety of exhibits available, a pharmacy may change window and gondola displays from time to time without repeating the same material. Establishing information centers on disaster preparedness in pharmacies creates certain responsibilities for the pharmacist which he must be prepared to meet. Up to now he has been rarely considered a full-fledged partner of the civil defense team but soon he will be invited to join committees on civil and disaster mobilization, created and manned for the most part by physicians with or without the participation of a few public health representatives. His participation in these joint committees will bring him into close contact with other members of the health professions where his activities and efforts can enhance their opinion of pharmacy as a profession. Committee work requires time, which should not be considered in dollars lost, but rather as intangible profits resulting from an increase in respect from both professional and lay people. A committee composed of representatives of the health professions has been in existence for several months in the San Francisco Bay area. Brought together through the initiative of the California State Department of Publi<' Health and the school of public health at the University of California, the committee meets once a month. Out of these meetings have come plans for the utilization of members of all the health professions; communication problems in the case of disaster have been discussed and plans set up to meet them. Another committee was formed through the initiative of the Medical Society of two Bay area counties. This committee, composed mostly of physicians, collaborated with local civil defense representatives and held three mock disaster exercises which yielded valuable information on civil defense plans. Neither of these committees, however, has done what we have specifically suggested here-make the pharmacist the training and information officer for the population at large and use his unique training for a major attack on the ignorance and inertia of the people in matters of modern warfare. No one can force the pharmacist to do this, but if he elects to do so and can get the organizational support of the pharmaceutical associations, the pharmacist will make a major contribution to the welfare of the people and our country and, in the process, receive an inestimable boost of recognition by professional and lay people alike. •
VOL. 21, NO. 1 0, OCTOBER 1960 / PRACTICAL PHARMACY EDITION
645