Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council

GROUP-4
What is disaster nursing?
• According to Kristin Allyce Reed and Amelia Marie Nelson (2020), during a
disaster situation, a nurse must be flexible and adaptable in order to fill
whatever role is necessary at the time, ensuring the best care for all patients.
And for the view of Kaithlyn Rojas, Disaster nursing is the adaptation of
professional nursing knowledge, skills, and attitude in recognizing and meeting
the physical and emotional needs of disaster victims. Based on the sources and
the understanding of the group disaster nursing is where nurses apply their
professional knowledge on healthcare, accommodating the people affected by a
disaster, these may include the different procedures, and over aspects of
healthcare (e.g. Spriritual, mental, physical, emotional).
What are the different phases of a disaster?

• Emergency managers think of

disasters as recurring events with four
phases: Mitigation, Preparedness,
Response, and Recovery. The following
diagram illustrates the relationship of
the four phases of emergency
management.
That's why it's important to have a cycle for emergency management.
At any time, communities are dealing with at least one type of
emergency.
Mitigation
This phase includes actions taken to prevent or reduce the cause, impact, and consequences
of disasters. Examples of hazard mitigation include:
• Tying down homes or barns with ground anchors to withstand wind damage

• Digging water channels to redirect water and planting vegetation to absorb water

• Constructing levees or permanent barriers to control flooding

• Reinforcing fencing to prevent animal escapes

• Buying insurance policies

Preparedness
This phase includes planning, training, and educational activities for events that cannot
be mitigated. Examples include:
 Developing disaster preparedness plans for what to do, where to go, or who to call
for help in a disaster
 
 Exercising plans through drills, tabletop exercises, and full-scale exercises
 
 Creating a supply list of items that are useful in a disaster
 
 Walking around a farm and identifying possible vulnerabilities to high winds
Response
The response phase occurs in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. During the
response phase, business and other operations do not function normally. Personal
safety and wellbeing in an emergency and the duration of the response phase
depend on the level of preparedness. Examples of response activities include:
 Implementing disaster response plans
 Conducting search and rescue missions
 Taking actions to protect yourself, your family, your animals, and others
 Addressing public perceptions about food safety
Recovery
During the recovery period, restoration efforts occur concurrently with regular
operations and activities. The recovery period from a disaster can be prolonged.
Examples of recovery activities include:
 Preventing or reducing stress-related illnesses and excessive financial
burdens
 
 Rebuilding damaged structures based on advanced knowledge obtained from
the preceding disaster
 
 Reducing vulnerability to future disasters
what are the nursing actions entailed with
each phase?
• With nursing being the most-trusted profession, the public assumes
nurses will step up in a crisis — and nurses usually do. The Red Cross
relies on the support of more than 20,000 student nurses and nurse
volunteers to serve in disaster response teams as clinicians,
educators, and leaders. A Registered Nurse (RN) to Bachelor of
Science in Nursing (BSN) program can help nurses gain the knowledge
and skills required for disaster response and preparedness.
Nurses serve as an essential resource and can hold a wide range of responsibilities
related to disaster preparedness and response including:
Serving within their organization. Developing an understanding of the disaster
preparedness and response plans, operational protocols, and security measures can
help nurses understand what their employers expect of them.
Providing education. Educating consumers and the community gives them the
knowledge they need to make it safely through a disaster and help others.
Knowledge can also do much to alleviate fear and anxiety.
 
Volunteering. Nurses who volunteer and become involved with an organized
disaster response system are better prepared when disaster strikes. A few
organizations that offer opportunities to assist with relief efforts include the American
Red Cross, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the United
States Public Health Service (PHS).
Assisting during a disaster. A nurse may be assigned a variety of tasks
during a disaster such as delivering first aid and medication, assessing the
state of victims, and monitoring mental health needs.
 
Preparing self and family. Some nurses have family members who rely on
them. Personal preparation with an emergency plan and basic emergency
supplies can help to ensure their families’ safety while easing the nurse’s
worries. Other things to consider include arranging a meeting place if
separated, ensuring reliable communication, and compiling important
paperwork.
What are the different phases of disaster planning? Discuss the goals
and significant activities entailed in each phase.
• The International Federation of Red Cross & Red Crescent
Societies defines disaster management as the
organization and management of resources and
responsibilities for dealing with all the humanitarian
aspects of emergencies, in particular preparedness,
response and recovery in order to lessen the impact of
disasters.
• Disaster Prevention – “The outright avoidance of adverse impacts of hazards and
related disasters.” UNISDR(United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction)
views Disaster Prevention as the concept of appealing in activities which intend to
prevent or avoid potential adverse impacts through action taken in advance,
activities designed to provide protection from the phenomenon of disasters.
Comparably highlight that while not all disasters can be prevented, good risk
management, evacuation plans, environmental planning and design standards can
reduce risk of loss of life and injury mitigation. The HYOGO Framework was one
such Global Plan for natural Disaster Risk Reduction, which was adopted in 2005
as a 10 year Global Plan, signed by agreement with 168 Governments which
offered guiding principles, priorities for action and practical means for achieving
disaster resilience for vulnerable communities.
• Disaster Preparedness – “The knowledge and capacities developed by governments, professional
response and recovery organizations, communities and individuals to effectively anticipate, respond
to, and recover from, the impacts of likely, impending or current hazard events or conditions”.
According to ICRC, Disaster Preparedness refers to measures taken to prepare for and lessen the
effects of disasters, be they natural or man-made. This is achieved through research and planning in
order to try to forecast areas or regions that may be at risk of disaster and where possible prevent
these from occurring and/or reduce the impact those disasters on the vulnerable populations that
may be affected so they can successfully cope. Disaster preparedness activities embedded with risk
reduction measures can prevent disaster situations and also result in saving maximum lives and
livelihoods during any disaster situation, enabling the affected population to get back to normally
within a short time period. Minimization of loss of life and damage to property through facilitation
of effective disaster response and rehabilitation services when required. Preparedness is the main
way of reducing the impact of disasters. Community-based preparedness and management should
be a high priority in physical therapy practice management.
Disaster Response / Relief – “The provision of emergency services and public
assistance during or immediately after a disaster in order to save lives, reduce health
impacts, ensure public safety and meet the basic subsistence needs of the people
affected”. Focused predominantly on immediate and short-term needs, the division
between this response/relief stage and the subsequent recovery stage is not clear-cut.
Some response actions, such as the supply of temporary housing and water supplies,
may extend well into the recovery stage. Rescue from immediate danger and
stabilization of the physical and emotional condition of survivors is the primary aims of
disaster response/relief, which go hand in hand with the recovery of the dead and the
restoration of essential services such as water and power.
Multi-agency response is vital to this stage of Disaster Management in order to reduce the
impact of a disaster and its long-term results with relief activities including:
•Rescue
•Relocation
•Provision Food and Water
•Provision Emergency Health Care
•Prevention of Disease and Disability
•Repairing Vital Services e.g. Telecommunications, Transport
•Provision Temporary Shelter
Disaster Recovery - Vulnerability of communities often continues for long after the initial
crisis is over. Disaster Recovery refers to those programs which go beyond the provision of
immediate relief to assist those who have suffered the full impact of a disaster and
include the following activities:
•Rebuilding Infrastructure e.g. Homes, Schools, Hospitals, Roads
•Health Care and Rehabilitation
•Development Activities e.g. building human resources for health
•Development Policies and Practices to avoid or mitigate similar situations in future
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