Ambulatory Decon Line

Procedure For Setting Up And Operating A Five-Station, Ambulatory Decontamination Line.

NOTE: This regimen is strictly for use in exercises.

Other than first laying the tarps, there is no particular order to the set up of the decon line. The hoses though, should not be charged until last moment. This just keeps the area a little dryer, and less tangled with hoses. In other words, we minimize the slip/ trip hazards.

Student Activities and Preparation.

Casual clothing should be worn.

Exam gloves or work gloves helpful.

Students with restrictions should use caution. This portion of the activity involves lifting and moving equipment.

Equipment Preparation.

Required equipment.

o 2 Tarps.

o 18-20 Traffic cones.

o 4 large pans.

o 4 rubber step pads.

o 4 buckets.

o 2 sprayers.

o 4 folding chairs.

o 1 large trash barrel.

o Hose cart with three reels.

o 3 water wands.

o 4 scrub brushes.

o 2 fan brushes.

o Barrier tape.

o 1 UV light or GM detector.

o 1-2 surface pumps as needed with hoses

o Extension cord for pump/ UV light

Decon Set Up.

Use the above as a checklist for assembling the elements of the line.

Spread out the tarps, the edges need to have berms to contain run off on the tarp,
you will need to work as a team, on the long edges 6 people would be good, less are
needed for the ends. Working together make 4 - 4" folds, folding under, let the tarp fall to the ground
Do Not smooth out the edges you need it to hold water, do the same to the ends of the tarp.

Bring 3 basins onto the tarp along with 6 traffic cones, line them up as shown in the diagram, between
each place a rubber step-off pad, put 2 cones adjacent to each basin to place hands during boot wash.

Next to the basins in the first two stations should be 5 gal. pails each should have a scrub brush one
at each station should have a long handled fan brush.

Each of the three stations should have a hose the first two should have long handled wands the third one
should use a short handled one. The third station is a "Rinse Only" station

Finally, the first two stations need to have a soap sprayer at each one.

Additional basins or buckets can be placed at the entrance to the line for a tool drop and by the 3rd basin
to place removed equipment.

The rest of the cones are used to establish the perimeter, leave an opening at each end for an entrance
and an exit, secure the perimeter with Police/Caution tape.
** Until a contaminated worker enters the decon line it can be considered a cold zone, once the process
has begun it becomes a warm zone and you must be wearing protective clothing in this area.**

To complete the line you need the "Decon Check" station just beyond the third basin, once this has been passed
you may go to the undressing area. If you fail the check you need be rewashed this will occur in the second
station, once everyone has gone through the line one time the first station is no longer used. More on this later
when I explain closing down the line.

For the undressing area you should have 2 rubber mats to stand on during tape removal, a trash barrel, 2 chairs.
**Workers in the undressing area may at times wear a Tyvek suit, Mask and P.A.P.R..**

Be sure the valves from the hose manifold are all off.

Attach the main line from the hose reel cart to the house line.

All hoses should have quik-connects attached for ease of use.

Open the valves on the manifold, turn water on check for leaks.

Put water into each of the 5 gal. buckets, use this to rinse the scrub brushes
avoid rinsing your brush in the catch basin and reapplying contaminant to suits.

Sprayers should be filled with 1/2 bottle of Baby Shampoo then water.

Have the black light standing by at the Decon check station

Decon Procedure.

Station 1. Gross decon.

o Hold victims outside of station until ready to begin.

o Gesture victim into first pan.

o If victim is wearing an SCBA, the waist belt is opened now.

o Shower victim from top to bottom, turning them so as to cover four sides. Front, side, back, side. Victim should now be facing forward.

o Soap is applied to four sides, paying attention to the hands and other hard to reach places,
under arms, between legs Etc.

Pay particular attention to the hands, these may be very contaminated, use the Fan brush,
Hold it up and have the person being decon'd put their hand through it.

o Work up lather with the scrub brushes.

o Rinse on all four sides.

o With victim facing forward, have them place their hands on the two cones and raise one foot to the rear.

o Spray, scrub and rinse the bottom of the boot. When completed, tap the bottom of the boot. They should now, with this clean foot, step onto the rubber step-off pad outside of the pan.

o Victim raises second foot, and bottom of boot is cleaned in the same manner, only now the victim steps completely out of the pan. Both feet should now be on the rubber step-off pad between stations 1 and 2.

· Station 2. Second wash.

o Gesture victim into pan.

o As victim is already wet, begin by applying soap to all four sides and scrubbing it in. Again, pay attention to hands.

o Victim rotates and soap is rinsed away.

o Use same procedure form step one for cleaning the bottom of the boots, and have victim step onto second rubber stand-off pad.

· Station 3. Final rinse and SCBA or APR removal.

o Gesture victim into pan.

o With victim leaning slightly forward, remove the SCBA regulator, and then the backpack.

o If APR is worn, remove only the cartridge.

o Deposit SCBA/ cartridge in tool drop.

o Victim rotates and is given a final rinse, paying attention to the back where the SCBA had been.

o Boots are rinsed and victim steps out of pan.

· Station 4. Decon check.

o Either visually or by using a UV light or some other meter, the efficiency of the decon is checked.

o Victim may be sent back to station 2 if decon is not complete.

o If decon appears complete, victim moves to the doffing stations.

· Doffing station.

o Tape is removed from all surfaces.

o Victim may sit on wet chair if necessary.

o Suit is unzipped.

o Working from hood down, suit is inverted so as to be inside out.

o Remove outer gloves.

o Once past the waist, the victim may sit in the dry chairs.

o With the suit showing nothing but the inside, it can be pulled down over the boots.

o The boots and suit are removed in one motion and as a package.

o While sitting forward, the mask is removed from top down so as not to spray any others in the area.

o Inner gloves are removed.

Final Steps.

· The victim is hydrated and vital signs obtained.

· Advise them that in actual decon, they would take a final unclothed shower.