Glossary
B
Baseline incidence: The incidence rate of disease in the community before the mass gathering event.
Biological agent: Bacteria, viruses, or other germs spread through air, water, or food. Often modified by terrorists to make them more dangerous when released.
C
Chemical agent: Poisonous gases, liquids, or solids that have toxic effects on people. Can cause serious injury or death.
Contact tracing: The identification and diagnosis of individuals who may have come in contact with an infected person.
Crowd density: The ratio between the number of persons and the area the crowd is in.
Crowd mood: A psychosocial phenomena based on social conditions, spectator personalities, and situational changes in the environment. Affects crowd behavior.
I
Incidence rate: Measures the proportion of new cases of disease within a population during a given period of time.
Incubation period: The time from the moment of exposure to an infectious agent until signs and symptoms of the disease appear.
Intentional acts: The deliberate release of biological, chemical, or radionuclear agents to cause illness or death in people.
Interoperability: The ability for all different devices and systems to function together.
Isolation: The separation of a person or group of persons from other people to prevent the spread of infection.
M
Mass casualty: A large number of people injured or dead in a relatively short period of time, usually as the result of a single incident that exceeds local logistical support capabilities.
Mass dispensing: Large-scale distribution of medications, vaccines, and other medical supplies.
Mass gathering: A preplanned, event held at a specific location for a defined period of time that strains local planning and response resources.
O
Outbreak: An increase in the number of expected cases of a certain disease in a given period of time (also sometimes called an epidemic).
Outbreak investigation: Determines the cause and how many people are affected in an outbreak.
P
Prophylaxis: A measure taken to prevent a disease.
Public health surveillance: The systematic collection and analysis of data about diseases and injuries.
Q
Quarantine: Restricting activities or limiting freedom of movement of those presumed exposed to a communicable disease so as to prevent contact with those unexposed. Measures may include suspending public gatherings, closing public places, and restricting travel.
R
Radionuclear agent: A weapon designed to release radiation or radioactivity at a level dangerous to human life.
Redundancy: Having multiple communication systems in case one system fails.
S
Surveillance: The systematic collection, analysis, interpretation, and dissemination of health data on an ongoing basis, to gain knowledge of the pattern of disease occurrence and potential in a community, in order to control and prevent disease in the community.
T
Triage: A system of assigning priorities of medical treatment based on urgency and chance of survival.