Hat1 Task 4

and Dentistry and Director of the Program in Disaster Mental Health in the Department of Psychiatry and the UR Center for Disaster Medicine and Emergency Preparedness. For over a decade, he has responded to numerous national disasters as a volunteer with the American Red Cross. He has also developed comprehensive disaster mental health training programs for the New York State Office of Mental Health and the New York State Department of Health currently being disseminated throughout every county, state psychiatric center and acute healthcare facility throughout New York State.

Disasters such as Hurricane Katrina has forced a shift of focus to making a sure is resilient to any type of disaster. The framework has been set to guide communities in this focus. In New Orleans, there is continuous work on

Whenever a disaster strikes an unsuspecting community, from natural weather events like hurricanes and tornadoes to the manmade catastrophes caused by contamination, local community health nurses become a lifeline for stricken victims, providing medical care, basic sanitation, and nutritional sustenance. While treating the ailments of the sick and dressing the wounds of the injured are the chief priorities for any nursing professional, community health nurses typically administer care within a close-knit population group, and this familiarity often requires the offering of spiritual support as well. The immediate aftermath of any major disaster, whether natural or manmade, is a chaotic time when panic, fear, and uncertainty can easily run rampant, and community health nurses must prepare themselves to handle the nonmedical aspects of assisting patients through their recovery. Setting aside one's personal views on organized religion or faith, alleviating a patient's outward symptoms can only be effective to a certain point when they are grieving for the sudden loss of a loved one, or contemplating an uncertain future after their property and

Today, the Incident Command System (ICS) is a major component of NIMS and is widely used in emergency management response. However, this was not always the case. According to David A. McEntire and Gregg Dawson, authors of the article, “The intergovernmental Context,” ICS was originally developed by the fire service in 1970. Its purpose was to assist in the command of wildfire events. It was unique because it standardized operations, yet offered flexibility so that it could be used on any number of events, regardless of size or type (McEntire & Dawson, 2007, p. 63).

My initial reaction after reading the case study was how impressed I was. Even though the responders expressed their inexperience with handling a real life mass casualty event, they were able to plan and conduct their triage smoothly. They were able to quickly set up a designated area for the minimal and no injuries individuals to stay while they assessed the more serious individuals. After reading the chapter, I noticed some areas of improvement that could have occurred during the response phase of the incident. There were some personnel resources that were not being utilized correctly in triage efforts. For instance, half went to the minimal and no injuries area to triage while the other half went to triage the more serious individuals.

For instance, if the persons filling the questionnaires were not the nurses themselves; this would greatly affect the integrity of the data collected. However, the large scope again makes up for this weakness since a good number of respondents would give the honest and discrete information required. The findings indicated that a good number of nurses are not confident with the way they handle disaster situations. This is a common opinion among health professionals since many nurses according to Veenema (2012) are often unprepared for emergencies. This is because they do not anticipate the magnitude of some of the occurrences they experience. The research was thus a success and indeed proved the hypothesis on nurse preparedness to disaster

When developing a disaster response plan, many variables should be considered. While some recommend planning for different stages of the disaster, the most important aspect is initial preparation for a disaster (Counts, 2001). Different disaster scenarios are considered along with education, training, and drills that should take place (Counts, 2001). Other things to consider are supplies and equipment that may be needed (Counts, 2001). Since supplies go quickly during a disaster, there should be an emergency stockpile of items needed for

A disaster, man-made or natural, is defined as any type of incidence that causes destruction, death, or damage that impacts the capability of the community to respond to using accessible resources (Nies & McEwen, 2015). For this week’s discussion post, I will describe the role and responsibilities of the nurse in relation to a disaster. I will also explain how my community is prepared to deal with a natural disaster, including protocols or guidelines that are in place.

Citizens of the United States face catastrophic disaster such as hurricane, tornadoes, hazmat spills and flooding. Emergency management situations varies. Managers have to put into consideration the type of disasters or the response of citizens. A great example, the hurricane in Tuscaloosa, AL required large amounts of medical and debris assistance from teams to help return the destructed site back to prior condition. National Disaster Medical Systems would be one of the first to respond if there is a tragic event like in Tuscaloosa, AL. Threw research, I hope to cover the history, objectives, goals, and support towards National Disaster Medical System.

Such a scenario allowed us as health care professionals to critically think what would be in the best interest for a large population in a crisis and how we can bring relief to them. One thing that surprised me was how it was a bit difficult to critically think what we would actually do through type of a crisis. Through my nursing perspective, I was unsure how I would manage the care of patients during a crisis outside of the hospital setting. It was interesting how each one of us had different dilemmas of how we would deal with this situation. One thing that I will take away from this, is that it’s important to maintain ethical care for those who are being cared during a disaster even when privacy and confidentiality may lack in such a situation. The second thing that I’ll take away is how to collaborate with team members and how to put our ideas together to manage to support the health and well-being of our patients. Lastly, I will take away how during a disaster/pandemic can affect our roles as health care professionals. The role of a pharmacist, nurse, or doctor can interchange through a crisis when the needs of for a population increases; where we need to take different roles the benefit the interest of the population. My attitude towards a pandemic situation has changed as now I’m aware of the importance of critical thinking and collaborating with others to better

A current issue today that impacts the society's citizens, health care and the profession of nursing is the health care system's response to large disasters. Earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes are large natural disasters that occur worldwide. Acts of terrorism are another form of disaster that our society has suffered from, however these are man-made disasters. Disasters affect families, children, schools, businesses, health care professionals, and also the health care system. In the instance that a disaster should occur, the health care system must be fully prepared; this includes having a clear and effective plan and collaborating with organizations in that area beforehand. A disaster prepared plan can allow the health care professionals to provide adequate care and support to the public. This particular issue is interesting because many people are not aware of the planning and the details that must be considered in disaster preparedness and response plans. All individuals particularly in the health care profession, such as nurses, must be well-educated about this topic to better the health care system’s response to large disasters.

Furthermore, when resilience planning is properly in place in the community, even if disaster strikes, the impact on the community will not be overwhelmed. This is why there is a need for community assessment on a regular basis to constantly equip the community to withstand any form of disasters. Both resilience and recovery requires community leaders to support public participation and collaboration when decision is being made. Community recovery in the aftermath of disaster would be faster if bidirectional communication is improved and encouraged between community residents, leaders and regulatory agencies (Reams, et al., 2017).

In “Community Resilience as a Metaphor, Theory, Set of Capacities, and Strategy for Disaster Readiness,” Norris and Pfefferbaum define community resilience as “a process of linking a network of adaptive capacities to a positive trajectory of functioning and adaptation after a disturbance. Basically, it is a community’s ability to return to normal after a disaster has occurred. Each community has the ability to return to adapt successfully after a stressor, but the community must be prepared with resources with dynamic attributes. Economic development, social capital, information and communication, and community competence are the four components required for community resiliency. Module 6 on ICONSnet focuses directly on the need for programs to help with community resilience.

Disaster recovery plan defines how an organization will deal with a possible disasters whether is natural or man-made. A disaster is just an event that makes the business process of normal functions impossible or challenging. A disaster recovery plan comprises of the protections taken so that the effects of a disaster will be mitigated and the organization will be able to continue or rapidly resume their normal operation roles. Normally, disaster recovery planning includes an analysis or risk assessment of the organizations processes and stability needs; it may also consist a major focus on disaster prevention. Disaster recovery plan in the United States usually has been controlled by State and local governments, with the Federal government as a supporting role. While we remain truthful to the basic constitutional principle, we must also accept that events such as hurricane Katrina and the terrorist attacks of 9/11, require the government, both local and State to tailor the application of these principles to the

Disaster management has become a hot issue in urban development and human security since threats from hazards and vulnerability are increasing, and have caused the damage from natural disasters to become more severe, and it has become crucial to lower the socio-economic loss. “Disaster,” is defined as a serious disruption to the functioning of a community or a society involving widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and having an impact which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources (UNISDR, 2009). “Hazards,” are defined as a dangerous phenomenon, substance, human activity or condition that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of