William Grass – Preparedness for CBRNE Incidents
William Grass is a PhD student at the Centre for Disaster Medicine (CKM) and works as a nurse anaesthetist in Växjö, Sweden. He was registered as a PhD student in January 2026 and is already well underway with his research. At the moment, he is working on developing a method for evaluating collaboration between different total defence actors during disaster medicine incidents. The method is planned to be tested during an exercise in autumn 2026 involving participants from NATO as well as the Norwegian healthcare system and Civil Defence.
William’s research focuses on CBRNE (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive hazards). Incidents involving these hazards can have serious consequences for our health, since they can include chemical releases, radiation accidents and nuclear power plant incidents. Contaminated people, animals and objects may also contribute to further spread, making the overall impact difficult to predict and manage.
We asked William a few questions about his research.
What is your research about?
Over the past decades, a range of education and training concepts have been developed within the CBRN field, but systematic evaluation remains limited. By examining preparedness, competence and capacity within emergency healthcare at the individual, organisational and system levels, we can generate knowledge that strengthens healthcare resilience and contributes to a more robust healthcare system in times of crisis, war and disaster.
How did you become interested in this field?
My interest began when I participated as a casualty actor in a CBRN exercise where an emergency department was training decontamination procedures. During my military service, I served as a Combat Medic in the national guard. Years later, a colleague encouraged me to apply for a position as a nurse within a military CBRN unit. I got the job and serve now as a Medical Officer in the Swedish Armed Forces.
The experience has been both educational and rewarding. At the same time, I noticed that knowledge of CBRNE medical management is limited, both nationally and internationally. This sparked my interest in pursuing research, particularly on collaboration between civilian and military actors.
What are your most important findings so far?
My first study explored how anaesthesiologists and nurse anaesthetists at four Swedish hospitals perceived their preparedness for managing CBRN incidents. The results show that healthcare professionals possess strong clinical foundations but lack specific CBRNE-related knowledge. Participants described a sense of inadequacy where medical, safety-related and ethical uncertainties converge.
A key finding is that preparedness relies heavily on individual initiative and collegial relationships rather than organisational structures. This can be directly linked to unclear guidelines, limited training opportunities and high production demands that make continuing education difficult.
The practical implications are clear: there is a need for regular and tailored CBRNE training, clearer guidelines and organisational conditions that enable preparedness activities to be conducted alongside routine clinical work. These findings form the basis for Study 2, a large-scale survey examining preparedness across several professional groups within emergency healthcare.
What has been the most challenging aspect of your PhD journey?
Finding a sustainable pace. It is easy to become overly ambitious and want to expand the project, so learning to maintain a healthy balance is important.
What has been the most rewarding aspect?
Being part of a community of PhD students and researchers who support one another has been incredibly valuable. It is also intellectually stimulating to learn about other research projects, both closely related to my own field as well as from different disciplines.
The research environment has also enabled me and several other PhD students, together with our clinical lecturer, to establish an academic clinical unit in Växjö – something we are very proud of.
Text: Annia Garcia
CBRNE star för Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives.
