Nurses and Disasters, Research Paper Example

The Role of Registered Nurses During a Disaster

There are many types of disasters which healthcare professionals are subject to at any time or place. Emergency preparedness is a term phrased which literally means to be ready for any type of hazard. Nurses in particular are trained to deal with emergencies. There has to be preparation and planning along with training an education to be able to cope with a disaster. Assembling an emergency supply kit, formulating an emergency plan and staying involved with the community is the foundation of emergency preparedness.

Disasters can be local, regional or nationwide.  Viral outbreaks such as the flu or salmonella are examples of one type of incident.  Natural disasters such as severe weather and earthquakes have specific preparedness guidelines to deal with the problem as it occurs and progresses. The Association of State and Territorial Directors of Nursing vision for emergency preparedness involves the community, family, and individual having a comprehensive emergency preparedness plan minimizing the consequences of disasters; enabling communities, families, and individuals to respond and recover (Jakeway, LaRosa, Cary, Schoenfisch, 2008).

Mass casualties, bioterrorism, and chemical and radiation emergencies are other disasters which require prior planning to be able to survive the specific disaster. The International Council of Nurses has worked through the years to raise the awareness of the need for disaster nursing through lectures and advocacy projects with the World Health Organization (Kingma, 2008). A major role nurses have is to be on the front line of care giving.  Therefore, in the event of a disaster, nursing personnel must be prepared and trained to able to manage the situations. However, most nurses do not receive adequate training in nursing school.  Most facilities have their own plans and training.  Vanderbilt University School of Nursing founded the Nursing Emergency Preparedness Education Coalition (NEPEC) to recognize the need for nurses to be adequately prepared to respond to mass casualties (Stokowski, 2010).

One of the first key strategies for the nursing personnel to identify is communication. Situation awareness and plan reinforcement through effective communication is important for patient safety. One example is the SBAR; situation, background, assessment, and recommendation/request. Nurses use this for communicating critical information that requires immediate attention and action (Mather, 2010). Team activation is critical to the first few hours in a disaster and communication is the key to keeping the situation under control. In times of disasters patients will panic, making it all the more necessary for nursing staff to remain focused and resilient in managing chaos.

Nurses are automatically expected to provide competent and skilled care; particularly in times of emergency and disasters. The population expects nurses to be equipped with the skills and talents to remain in control of their emotions; in order to provide care to the sick and injured. Nurses are required to think on their feet for any situation which may arise. No matter how well prepared a nurse may be in the core competencies, they are often required to relate problem solving skills and flexible thinking to a situation.

Nursing personnel should also be cautious of secondary exposure.  Using personal protective equipment and making sure that volunteers are also equipped to prevent care givers from becoming ill. Physical and psychological well being is at stake for nurses who experience prolonged workloads, grief and misunderstandings and assaults from survivors (Wang, Shi, Ng,Wang and Chan, 2010).  Although nurses are attempting to help victims, some can be disoriented and confused.  Some may even just be venting anger and the target is just the first person they come into contact with.

Nurses also play a role in verifying the volunteers qualified to help in an emergency situation.  Volunteers unknown to the command and control personnel should never be used. About 10% of people who just show up to help at the site of a disaster claiming to be a nurse, are not what they claim to be (Kingma, 2008).  In the case of a lack of healthcare professionals, there are organizations which can supply aid by sending trained nurses with verified credentials.  These exist at both the state and federal levels (Kingma, 208).

During an emergency or disaster nurses are taught to meet the patients’ hierarchy of needs.  The most basic of needs for survival are water, food and sleep; as these needs are met, the safety and security needs prevail (Mather, 2010).  Decreasing anxiety for victims is also a priority along with building trust. Paranoia and dangerous behavior can be formed in individuals who are frightened and worried. Limiting this through creating homeostasis in the situation is beneficial for all. Creating a climate of trust, collaboration and communication increases the patient’s awareness and supplies a feeling of security and caring.

The nurse must consider the ethical components also of working with patients and victims in a disaster.  The situation is high stress and often fast paced. Accountability is at its highest level for nurses in managing a disaster situation; particularly if the nurse is in an environment which is not familiar. The nurse must not only call upon education and experience, but also learn supplies are and the specifics of the new location.

Preparedness and training is proactive in understanding the dynamics of nursing in a disaster.  Facility planning and nursing personnel management teams organized prior to a situation is one way to have a well organized plan of action to be able to implement in the case of an emergency or disaster.  Preparation, education and training is vital to nurses being able to fulfill their role in the disaster situation.

References

Jakeway, C.C., LaRosa, G., Cary, A.,  Schoenfisch, S. (2008). The role of public health nurses in emergency preparedness and response: a position paper of the Association of State and Territorial Directors of Nursing.  Public Health Nursing, July-August, 2008, vol 25 iss 4, pp. 353-61.  Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18666941

Kingma, M. (2008).  International council of nurses: disaster nursing. Prehospital and Diaster Medicine. Vol 23, suppl 1.  Retrieved from http://pdm.medicine.wisc.edu/Volume_23/issue_3/kingma.pdf

Mather, M.E., (2010). A personal reflection: nursing in times of disaster.  Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing. Vol 29, iss 6, pp 284-287. Retrieved from http://www.nursingcenter.com/pdf.asp?AID=1076352

Stokowski, L.A. (2010). Ready, willing and able: preparing nurses to respond to disasters.  Nursing Perspectives, 1/15/2010.  Retrieved from http://gnmrc.net/Documents/Preparing%20Nurses%20to%20Respond%20to%20Disasters.pdf

Wang, X.L., Shi, Z.B., Ng, S.M., Wang, B., Chan, C.L. (2010).  Sustaining engagement through work in postdisaster relief and reconstruction. Qualitative Health Research. October, 21, 2010.  Retrieved from http://qhr.sagepub.com/content/early/2010/10/20/1049732310386049.long