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As a part of Children's Hospital Boston and its Biodefense Program, the Center for Bipreparedness has also played a significant role in modeling Children's Hospital into the premier program in pediatric consequence management. Over the last two years Children's Hospital Boston has: (1) trained personnel throughout the hospital on principles of terrorism, campus security and consequence management, (2) purchased and configured equipment for the management of mass casualty incidents, (3) developed pediatric surge capacity protocols, (4) purchased personal protective equipment and trained emergency personnel in the management of pediatric victims, (5) developed decontamination protocols for pediatric victims of chemical or radiation exposure, and (6) provided education to the Greater Boston medical community in pediatric aspects of homeland security/public health preparedness.
However, the primary mission of the Center is to conduct original research that examines the efficacy of systems and protocols that have been developed as part of homeland security/public health preparedness efforts. Since 2000 the Center scientists have published more than 20 research papers, examining issues such as the value of educational websites in enhancing physician knowledge of bioterrorism, the ability to identify infection clusters, using both temporal and geospatial data, and innovative methods of clinical decision analysis that assist in the prompt recognition of infectious outbreaks. These investigations and the resulting systems are currently being examined for their ability to rapidly identify emerging infections of all types, including West Nile virus and SARS. The Center's syndromic surveillance systems are among the most extensive and sensitive instruments currently available. One model of the Center's surveillance system is EDScope which identifies changes in the visit pattern of the Children's Hospital Boston Emergency Department.
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