Participants in action during the simulation training sessionsBeirut, 29 March 2016 – In view of the current instability in Lebanon’s neighbouring countries, the risk of exposure to hazards has increased. In this respect, WHO Lebanon proposed to train health staff on the medical management of potential cases exposed to these hazards, in addition to public health measures required to manage such risks. Moreover, such capacity-building is required as part of the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005).

In September 2015, a decision was taken by the Ministry of Public Health with the support of WHO to create a national HAZMAT medical team to be able to effectively play its role and responsibilities as a member in the Lebanese National CBRN team launched by the Prime Minister Mr Tammam Salam, with the European CBRN Centre of Excellence under the name of “Project 34”.

The overall goal of the project was to improve the preparedness and response capability of the Ministry of Health to deal with any potential threats generated from hazard incidents, including chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological materials.

13 training sessions were conducted between 16 November and 22 December for 242 participants from the Civil Defense, the Medical Team and the Lebanese Red Cross. The objectives of the trainings were to: create a multisectorial Hazmat team with different disciplines at the national level to face any CBRN event in Lebanon, ready 24/7 to respond to CBRN hazards exposures. In addition to the advanced training, WHO provided advanced level of personal protective equipment for the Hazmat team.