The Role Of Healthcare Professionals And Public Health Providers

A natural disaster has the capability to cause large scale damage and destruction to an area. Seismic events have been known to alter landscapes and affect the livelihoods, health and development of communities. No two earthquake events are the same and the level of threat posed by an earthquake can vary due to both the human and physical factors of an area. The 2010 magnitude - 7.0 earthquake that occurred in Haiti is an example of where a natural disaster caused a previously vulnerable area to suffer tremendous loss and debilitating socio-economic impacts, to an already poverty-stricken nation.

The Department of Homeland Security is responsible for “consolidating existing federal government response plans into a single, coordinated national response plan.” (GAO Reports. 2007.) The Homeland Security Act of 2002 allows them to handle all sorts of disasters from natural disasters to terrorist attacks. DHS also “Operates the Federal

FEMA takes over for state and local governments whey they tell FEMA what they need.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would become the central point-of-contact within the national government in responding to incidents. Since formation in 1979, FEMA’s core missions were to enhance the government’s ability to survive a foreign attack, and to assist state and local authorities in disaster response (Carafano, 2005). And while the two core missions seem heterogenous in scope at times from an outside perspective, the biggest difference between the two tasks is duration. A man-made disaster may be over in a matter of minutes as compared to a hurricane lasting several days, but in both instances the road to recovery is long. In order to streamline response and recovery in either scenario, FEMA was reorganized with new directives to support comprehensive emergency management practices (CRS, 2006). Today, FEMA provides the standard approach and guidance that many local communities may not have due to funding, training, and

When a disaster such as a hurricane takes place, the first responsibility is of the state’s governor to make a formal request for a state of disaster and receive the necessary assistance and aid to the affected area (The Disaster Hanbook- National Edition, 1998). The President of the United States of America must make a declaration of emergency and major disaster to initiate the effort to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) (The Disaster Hanbook- National Edition, 1998). Once a disaster has been declared, the U.S president will send supplementary funds to the state and local efforts to aid the affected population (The Disaster Hanbook- National Edition, 1998). In order for funding to be dispersed to the area in need, the President of the United States must allow this action to take place.

Under the 1988 Stafford Act, the federal government guidance is to support the disasters only if they are of “such severity and magnitude beyond their state and the affected local government’s capabilities to support the disaster” (Edwards, 2014). The Governor may request to the president to declare an “emergency” or a “major disaster” if federal assistance is needed (Edwards, 2014). An “emergency” declaration usually considered when a hurricanes hit, whereas “major disaster” declarations is after disasters to render aid to state and local governments and individuals (Edwards, 2014). In the past, 86 percent of major disaster declarations requested by governors to the president have been approved (Edwards, 2014).

Natural disasters are the catastrophes cause by “Mother Nature”, which is often difficult to forecast or manage (Morrison, et al 2014). Examples of

The natural disasters such as landslide, earthquake, volcano eruption, wildfire, tsunami are disasters that happens in earth’s system which is hydrosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere and biosphere (Van Wesper, C.J., 2000). As Malaysia lies outside the Pacific Ring of Fire it is excluded from volcano eruption and earthquakes. The most dominant disaster in Malaysia is the landslide occurs during rainy seasons.

Disasters, whether natural or manmade, can happen anytime and anywhere, without warning. An earthquake, hurricane, tornado, fire, or hazardous material spill or even an act of terrorism can happen

Primary care physicians (PCP) play a crucial role in dementia diagnosis. Older patients receive healthcare primarily from their general practitioners (GPs). [51, 52] Most patients and carers prefer their GPs to be the first source of professional help when dealing with dementia. [53-55] The Australian guidelines advocate early diagnosis by timely exploration of symptoms raised by patients and carers. [14] It would be reasonable for GPs to initiate the diagnostic process for suspected dementia cases before referring to specialists or memory clinics for confirmation of diagnosis. Following a formal diagnosis, GPs are expected to provide ongoing management and follow up, with adequate monitoring of efficacy and side effects of dementia modulating drugs; detection, prevention and treatment of dementia complications such as Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD), falls, malnutrition; and appropriate referrals to support services. [56-60] The disclosure of dementia diagnosis should be a shared responsibility between specialists and GPs, with GPs exploring patients ' perceptions about symptoms and initiating tentative discussions about possible diagnoses prior to referral to specialists and provide ongoing emotional and practical support post diagnosis. [61] Although discussion of advanced care planning, legal issues and driving may be raised by

Due to diverse geo-climatic conditions prevalent in different parts of the globe, different types of natural disasters like floods, droughts, earthquakes, cyclones, landslides, and volcanoes etc may strike according to the vulnerability of the area.

While natural disasters such as floods, drought and hurricanes are commonly thought to occur due to environmental forces such as weather, climate and tectonic movements; a deeper investigation into the ‘disaster’ displays other contributing forces. Human factors have a large, if not equal, contribution to the occurrance and outcome of such disasters (Pelling, 2001). As Pelling (2001) argues, there is both a physical and human dimension to ‘natural disasters’. The extent to which the natural occurrence of a physical process, such as a flood or earthquake, impacts on society is constructed by that society, creating a ‘disaster’ as measured by a

Natural disasters are a major adverse event resulting from natural processes of the Earth, and man-made disasters are influenced by humans and they are often as a result of negligence and human error among the factors. There is long-term physical and psychological reaction of people from both disasters. Tsunamis, Hurricanes, and Landslides are some examples of natural disasters. On the other hand, Gas leaks, fire accidents, and oil spills are some examples for man-made disaster. They both have a bad effect on humans. There are many people died after both disasters.

Natural disasters may be defined as natural catastrophes which cause great damage by disrupting the functioning of a society thus rendering the country incapable of coping through using its own resources as there is a need for outsider assistance in order to effectively preserve lives and the environment. Conversely, Natural hazards are natural phenomena that are potential threats to people within a society, structures or economic assets and may cause disaster. Natural disasters are inevitable and ubiquitous worldwide. Within the Caribbean, they are chiefly present in the forms of hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, droughts, and volcanoes. The great damages caused by natural disasters may be divided into three categories: social, economic

Natural disaster is a sudden and terrific event in nature (such as a hurricane, tornado, flood, heat waves,typhoon) that usually results in serious damage and a huge amount of deaths.