Disaster Response and Global Health Section

Drowning is an underrecognized global health care burden across the world. Review what the experts discussed on the topic in a recorded session from CHEST 2025.

In 2026, the FIFA World Cup will land in North America, whose health care infrastructure must be equipped to handle infectious disease threats, health care surges, mass casualty events, routine injuries, and chronic conditions.

In the wake of the fires that ravaged Los Angeles County, take this opportunity to review fire preparedness and know what to do before, during, and after a devastating wildfire.

Patients who are injured do better when treated at trauma centers. During CHEST 2023 in Honolulu last year, the Disaster Response and Global Health Section hosted a presentation to a packed audience highlighting the history of the trauma model system in America. Attendees learned about the emergence of trauma systems in the US and the…

Viral infections frequently cause acute respiratory failure requiring ICU admission. In the United States, influenza causes over 50,000 deaths annually and SARS-CoV2 resulted in 170,000 hospitalizations in December 2023 alone.1 2 RSV lacks precise incidence data due to inconsistent testing but is increasingly implicated in respiratory failure. Patients with underlying pulmonary comorbidities are at increased…

In recent years, the importance of inpatient vaccinations against respiratory viral illnesses has become increasingly clear. As the world grapples with the ever-present threat of contagious diseases like influenza, COVID-19, Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) and other respiratory viruses, the significance of vaccinating individuals during hospital stays cannot be overstated. Notably, the rates of inpatient vaccinations…

We think of disasters as sudden, calamitous events, but it does not take much imagination to recognize the loss of lives in America from firearm violence as a type of disaster. In 2020, 45,222 people died from gun-related injuries, an increase of 5,155 (14%) since 2019 (Kegler, et al. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2022;71[19]:656). This is…