Chemical Hazards and Poisons |
Published on: 21 December 2007 |
Providing a service in the Republic of Ireland
Background
In 1997 the local health boards of the Republic of Ireland (RoI) agreed to subscribe to services offered by The Chemical Incident Management Support Unit (CIMSU), itself housed at Llandough Hospital, Cardiff. This followed on from the agreement made with the local health boards in Northern Ireland . This meant that all of the local health board throughout Ireland were contracted to CIMSU at this time.
The contract provided for the provision of toxicological advice regarding community exposure to acute chemical incidents. This ensured access to advice and support on a 24-hour/7-days per week, 365 days per year. It also ensured that an annual training day was held in the ROI on topics relevant to the public health implications of acute chemical incidents.
The service to the RoI Health Service Executives (HSE) was delivered through day to day access to an environmental health officer and a clinical toxicologist. Further pharmacological, environmental and epidemiological support was accessible through this portal.
With the advent of the HPA in April 2003 and the subsequent establishment of the Chemical Hazards and Poisons Division (CHaPD), the contract was subsumed into this new organisation, but with a portal of entry through CHaPD-Cardiff. Demand on the service provided by the HPA has increased with time, making it timely to review requirements and to develop an appropriate service level agreement. Accordingly, both parties are currently reviewing the service and are discussing the major areas to be covered.
The Service
CHaPD-Cardiff will act as a portal for access to expert and authoritative advice and support on the following areas which the service is likely to provide:
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Emergency Planning and Preparedness
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Chemical incident management
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Risk assessment
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Environmental sampling and monitoring
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Biological monitoring
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Chemical terrorism
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Clinical toxicology
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Air pollution
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Industrial regulation
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Water quality
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Contaminated land
The formation of this new division has allowed access to a greater range of skills and resources, not only within the HPA, but also through its links to regional, national and international expert bodies, such as Committee on Toxicity, Committee on Medical Aspects of Air Pollution, Committee on Carcinogenicity, Committee on Mutagenicity, WHO and G7+Mexico. Accordingly, CHaPD will act as a portal for access to expert and authoritative advice and support .
CHaPD will continue to support the HSE of the RoI on a 24/7/365 basis through its 24-hour hotline and access to scientific and medical expertise.
Chemical Hazards and Poisons Report
Through the Centre for Radiation, Chemical, and Environmental Hazards, the Agency publishes a series of well-established newsletters and reports which serve to keep stakeholders updated on a range of matters associated with radiation and chemical hazards that may be accessed via the HPA website. Readers wishing to obtain further information on these publications and the topics covered should make contact through the email address given.
Chemical Hazards and Poisons Report – Issue 10
- Incident Response: Flooding in England 2007; Fireworks incident new Lewes, December 2006; Discovery of World War II Special Incendiary Phosphorous (SIP) grenades in a Wiltshire Garden; The use of a novel technology in the remediation of a contaminated land site as a public health protection measure
- Odour Issues
- Emergency Planning and Preparedness
- Environmental
- Conference and Workshop Reports
- Training Reports
- Training Days
Chemical Hazards and Poisons Report - Issue 10, May 2007(
2.85 MB)
Contact: Virginia Murray; email: Virginia.murray@hpa.org.uk