Call to Action

I had just received the January issue of American Nurse Today this week.  Within it was an article authored by David Benton titled "Is nursing prepared for the next disaster?  Are we?

Do we have a plan B in place to cover other systems that will be affected by the disaster (schools, child-care, elder-care, transportation, etc.)?  Do we have a game plan in place for our families so that we can effectively respond to the disaster?  Have we read after-action reports from previous disasters that dramatically affected the delivery of healthcare to learn the lessons learned?  Or are we doomed to repeat the same mistakes and shortcomings that occurred in previous events?

Are we becoming advocates for increased availability for disaster training in our workplace or advanced degree programs?  Are we prepared for the realities of a major incident?

How many of our workplaces offer disaster training through simulation, community disaster exercises, hospital exercises, or tabletop exercises?  How many of us are ready for the mental health challenges that we will face during a disaster; in our patients and ourselves?  What resources are available to our patients and us?  Is our behavioral health
or employee health resources actively involved in the planning phase?

How many of us truly understand that when we talk about triage during a disaster we are talking about the fact that we will not be able to save everyone?  Inherent in a disaster is an event that so totally overwhelms the healthcare system that simple issues become major hurdles.  This will be mentally taxing for many of us.  How many of us are so self-aware of our triggers and are okay to ask for help?

These and many more questions need to be asked.  If you identify a gap or shortcoming, are you willing to take action no matter your role in your institution?

Thank you David Benton for your timely article.

References

Benton, D. (2018). Is nursing prepared for the next disaster? American Nurse Today. 13(1), 32-33.

Veenema, T. G., Lavin, R. P., Griffin, A., Gable, A. R., Couig, M. P., & Dobalian, A. (2017). Call to Action: The Case for Advancing Disaster Nursing Education in the United States. Journal of Nursing Scholarship. 49(6), 688-696.

National Healthcare Disaster Certification

For a while now, I have been discussing the need for a better foundation for healthcare professionals regarding what to expect and how to respond during an emergency or a disaster.  If this past hurricane season has taught us anything, interagency and interdepartmental cooperation is paramount to a successful response to a large scale incident.

To that end, the American Nurse Credentialing Center (ANCC) last year created an interprofessional certification that offers to provide a valid and reliable assessment of the competencies required to respond to a large-scale healthcare crisis.  The National Healthcare Disaster Professional certification (http://nursecredentialing.org/Certification/NurseSpecialties/National-Healthcare-Disaster-Certification) has done a great job in ensuring the foundation of what is required to interact with the myriad of agencies that will respond.

This is not just designed for nurses. This is designed for every profession that plays a role in the effective response to a disaster.  Public health, emergency management, fire, police, EMS, governmental, public/private, and healthcare.....all are included.

From my perspective, this is not to replace any existing certification.  This is intended as a means to plug the gaps that are present in between disciplines.  Yet again, in my humble opinion, well worth the time and money necessary to complete!