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Natural disaster preparedness in a multi-hazard environment: Characterizing the sociodemographic profile of those better (worse) prepared.

ABSTRACT: The growing multi-hazard environment to which millions of people in the world are exposed highlights the importance of making sure that populations are increasingly better prepared. The objective of this study was to report the levels of preparedness of a community exposed to two natural hazards and identify the primary sociodemographic characteristics of groups with different preparedness levels. A survey was conducted on 476 participants from two localities of the Atacama Region in the north of Chile during the spring of 2015. Their level of preparedness at home and work was assessed to face two types of natural hazards: earthquakes and floods.The findings show that participants are significantly better prepared to face earthquakes than floods, which sends a serious warning to local authorities, given that floods have caused the greatest human and material losses in the region's recent history of natural disasters. Men claimed to be more prepared than women to face floods, something that the authors attribute to the particular characteristics of the main employment sectors for men and women in the region. The potential contribution of large companies on preparedness levels of communities in the areas in which they operate is discussed. The sociodemographic profile of individuals with the highest levels of preparedness in an environment with multiple natural hazards are people between 30 and 59 years of age, living with their partner and school-age children. The implications of the results pertaining to institutions responsible for developing disaster risk reduction plans, policies and programs in a multi-hazard environment are discussed.

SUBMITTER: Bronfman NC

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6481794 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Natural disaster preparedness in a multi-hazard environment: Characterizing the sociodemographic profile of those better (worse) prepared.

Bronfman Nicolás C NC Cisternas Pamela C PC Repetto Paula B PB Castañeda Javiera V JV

PloS one 20190424 4

The growing multi-hazard environment to which millions of people in the world are exposed highlights the importance of making sure that populations are increasingly better prepared. The objective of this study was to report the levels of preparedness of a community exposed to two natural hazards and identify the primary sociodemographic characteristics of groups with different preparedness levels. A survey was conducted on 476 participants from two localities of the Atacama Region in the north o ...[more]

PMID: 31017910

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Project description:AimThe aim of this paper is to outline the steps taken to develop an operational checklist to assess primary healthcare (PHC) all-hazards disaster preparedness. It then describes a study testing the applicability of the checklist.BackgroundA PHC approach is an essential foundation for health emergency and disaster risk management (H-EDRM) because it can prevent and mitigate risks prior to disasters and support an effective response and recovery, thereby contributing to communities' and countries' resilience across the continuum of the disaster cycle. This approach is in line with the H-EDRM framework, published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019, which emphasizes a whole-of-health system approach in disaster management and highlights the importance of integrating PHC into countries' H-EDRM. Nevertheless, literature focusing on how to practically integrate PHC into disaster management, both at the facility and at the policy level, is in its infancy. As of yet, there is no standardized, validated way to assess the specific characteristics that render PHC prepared for disasters nor a method to evaluate its role in H-EDRM.MethodsThe checklist was developed through an iterative process that leveraged academic literature and expert consultations at different stages of the elaboration process. It was then used to assess primary care facilities in a province in Italy.FindingsThe checklist offers a practical instrument for assessing and enhancing PHC disaster preparedness and for improving planning, coordination, and funding allocation. The study identified three critical areas for improvement in the province's PHC disaster preparedness. First, primary care teams should be more interdisciplinary. Second, primary care services should be more thoroughly integrated into the broader health system. Third, there is a notable lack of awareness of H-EDRM principles among PHC professionals. In the future, the checklist can be elaborated into a weighted tool to be more broadly applicable.

Project description:BackgroundIn recent years, Iran has encountered a growing frequency of earthquake disasters. Given that nurses constitute the largest group of healthcare providers, it is imperative that they possess adequate disaster preparedness skills, irrespective of the location or time. Despite the operating room nurses' roles in disasters, their experiences and challenges in disaster preparedness have been overlooked. Consequently, this study aimed to investigate the experiences, challenges, perspectives, and factors influencing the disaster preparedness of operating room nurses during the 2017 earthquake in Kermanshah, Iran.MethodsThe present qualitative research was carried out in Iran In 2022 utilizing conventional content analysis. The study involved conducting semi-structured interviews with 16 operating room nurses who had participated in disaster preparedness during the Kermanshah earthquake. The participants were selected using a purposive sampling approach that aimed to achieve maximum diversity. The interviews were continued until the point of data saturation was reached, and the verbatim transcripts were analyzed using conventional content analysis in MAXQDA software. To ensure the rigor of the research, Guba and Lincoln's criteria were employed.ResultsThe study conducted data analysis to identify the main theme as "insufficient disaster preparedness due to a faded preparedness", along with six major categories and eighteen subcategories related to earthquake disaster preparedness. The major categories included: knowledge and perception of preparedness for disasters; educational and training programs for disaster preparedness; equipment preparedness for disasters; managerial-organizational preparedness for disasters; clinical skills for responding to disasters; and resilient ability in disaster response situations.ConclusionThe findings of the study provide valuable insights into the dimensions of disaster preparedness in earthquake disasters among operating room nurses. Nursing managers can utilize these findings to develop effective strategies and provide support in areas such as improving knowledge and educational level, equipment preparedness, strengthening plans and managerial structures, enhancing skills, and explaining resilience strategies to improve the disaster preparedness of operating room nurses and medical organizations' disaster response teams.

Dataset Information

Natural disaster preparedness in a multi-hazard environment: Characterizing the sociodemographic profile of those better (worse) prepared.

Publications

Natural disaster preparedness in a multi-hazard environment: Characterizing the sociodemographic profile of those better (worse) prepared.

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