Accidental or voluntary chemical incidents create many health and environmental problems. According to the physico-chemical proprieties of the released agent, risks are present for all involved persons (victims, rescuers), either by primary contamination (contact with skin or mucosal surfaces, respiratory tract inhalation), or by secondary contamination from close contact with exposed victims. Recent descriptions of mass-chemical accidents with numerous spontaneous evacuations from the contaminated zone to nearby hospitals represent an important risk for secondary contamination to these hospitals.

The use of an easy-to-set-up decontamination gate to protect or preserve hospitals from contamination of their site and personnel following a massive influx of contaminated patients was evaluated. A multi-disciplinary team equipped six regional hospitals with mass-decontamination gates without mobilizing excessive human or material resources.

Basic formation of hospital personnel took two hours; attaching the gate to a local fire hydrant took <10 minutes.

This decontamination gate has several advantages and limitatins that will be discussed. However, it does have merit as an autonomous protection for non-specialized and equipped hospitals to prevent secondary contamination.