Since September 11, medical professionals have increasingly become aware of the importance of preparing for disasters in the community.

Being prepared to respond to a potential catastrophic disaster is critical in California, land of earthquakes. Dr. Christopher Grande of ITACCS (International Trauma Anesthesia and Critical Care Society) estimates that in the scenario of a catastrophic earthquake centered in Los Angeles (7.9 on the Richter Scale), there would be 50,000 deaths and 90,000 injuries, including 1,015 critical burns, while the number of beds in Burn Units can be predicted to plummet from 158 before to 24 after the event. Furthermore, a well-intentioned but poorly-trained clinician who arrives at the site of a Disaster to offer aid can quickly become another casualty.

In May 2006, The University of Pittsburgh Center for Biosecurity held a summit entitled Disease, Disaster and Democracy—The Public's Stake in Health Emergency Planning to advise leaders in government, public health, and disaster management on the feasibility and benefits of actively engaging citizens in planning for large-scale health emergencies. Within the ASA seal itself, there is a rendering of a lighthouse illuminating the way on stormy seas, the motto "Vigiliance" simply stated above. Just as we conduct ourselves with this kind of proud professionalism in our individual practices with individual patients, so too must we help to light the way in our communities when disaster strikes.

Ultimately, every disaster is truly a local problem, and we hope that our members, as good citizens of their local communities, will expend the effort required to educate themselves both in understanding the organization of all-hazards response and in the skills needed for them to be integrated optimally into a hazard response team.

To this end, the California Society of Anesthesiologists seeks to inform its members of what resources are available to improve their preparedness for disasters, natural and unnatural. All members are encouraged to develop an all-hazards preparedness plan for themselves and their families. FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, provides an excellent link for individuals desiring to take the first step in preparedness planning.

Ultimately, every disaster is truly a local problem, and we hope that our members, as good citizens of their local communities, will expend the effort to educate themselves both in understanding the organization of all-hazards response and in the skills needed for them to be optimally integrated into a hazard response team.

This area of the CSA web site has been constructed to aid in the dissemination of information to our members and others. This section of the web site intends to serve as a reference—a source of relevant links as well as informative content as needed, selecting only what is clinically useful to anesthesiologists who wish to learn about different types of disasters and how to prepare for them in their everyday practices.

We would like to recognize Kenneth Y. Pauker, M.D., currently Chair of CSA's Legislative and Practice Affairs Division and formerly Chair of the CSA Task Force on Disaster Preparedness for his vision and tireless effort to develop this site as a source for all CSA members.

Comments concerning outdated links or suggestions for new content are encouraged and welcome.

Christopher Cornelissen, D.O.
San Diego, CA