4 June 2026 Departmental update
Geneva, 4 June 2026 | WHO has updated its guidance for the clinical management of patients exposed to chemical weapons or other hazardous or toxic chemicals.
Armed conflicts can lead to accidental or intended releases of toxic chemicals, putting civilians – including children, women, and displaced populations – at risk of burns, trauma, and other consequences. These exposures can be deadly or lead to long-term disability, not only because of the severity of injuries but also due to critical gaps in specialized training, essential equipment, and clear referral pathways for the events.
WHO applies an ‘all hazards approach’ to address natural, accidental or deliberate threats to mitigate the health impacts. The core principles – early recognition, protection of health-care workers, rapid decontamination, structured triage, and timely antidotal and supportive care – remain essential for managing toxic chemical exposures of any origin...
Supporting frontline health-care workers
The guidance is intended for health-care workers who may receive chemically exposed patients in emergency departments, hospitals, and other facilities, including situations where prior decontamination has not been performed. A core principle reaffirmed in the guidance is the prioritization of lifesaving care: immediate threats to airway, breathing, and circulation should be managed without delay when it is safe to do so and when responders are adequately protected.
Developed through expert consultation
The update was coordinated by a WHO technical team with contributions from international experts in clinical toxicology, emergency medicine, and chemical incident response. Declarations of interest were reviewed according to WHO policy, with no financial conflicts identified.
Access and use
The 2026 guidance is published as ‘interim guidance’, reflecting the evolving nature of chemical threats and medical countermeasures. It is available for open access under a Creative Commons license to support broad dissemination and adaptation.
WHO encourages Member States, emergency services, and training institutions to use this updated guidance to strengthen national preparedness, clinical protocols, and training programmes for chemical exposure incidents...
COMMENT (NPW): I'd like to emphasise a general point here about WHO international guidance. WHO is uniquely placed to prepare reliable guidance of this kind. Its procedures are rigorous and its reach unprecedented, with all such guidance available to all, open access. Furthermore WHO has the unique authority and trust of the member states that it serves, which promotes uptake of the guidance into policy and practice. This aspect of WHO's work needs to be strengthened, including the capacity of member states to use and adapt guidance to develop similarly rigorous national publications that integrate local evidence and context.
Best wishes, Neil
HIFA profile: Neil Pakenham-Walsh is coordinator of HIFA (Healthcare Information For All), a global health community that brings all stakeholders together around the shared goal of universal access to reliable healthcare information. HIFA has 20,000 members in 180 countries, interacting in four languages and representing all parts of the global evidence ecosystem. HIFA is administered by Global Healthcare Information Network, a UK-based nonprofit in official relations with the World Health Organization. Email: neil@hifa.org