NCM 121

• Disaster refers to an event or situation that is of greater magnitude than an emergency
• Disaster disrupts essential services such housing, transportation, communication, sanitation, water, and health care, and that requires the response of people outside the community affected
• Disaster particularly signifies an event that carries unforeseen, serious, and immediate threats to public health
• The WHO defines Disaster as "any occurrence that causes damage, ecological disruption, loss of human life, deterioration of health and health services, on a scale sufficient to warrant an extraordinary response from outside the affected community or area."
• A disaster is a natural or human caused catastrophe that causes destruction, frequently including loss of life, with permanent changes to an environment and a community" (Halpern & Tramontin, 2007).
• Features of a Disaster

  1. Unpredictability
  2. Unfamiliarity
  3. Speed
  4. Urgency
  5. Uncertainty
  6. Threat
• Types of Disasters

  1. Natural disasters
  2. Man-made/Anthropogenic/ Human- Generated disasters
• Natural Disasters a serious disruption triggered by a natural hazard causing human, material, economic or environmental losses, which exceed the ability of those affected to cope
• Types of Natural Disasters

  1. Geophysical
  2. Hydrological
  3. Meteorological
  4. Climatological
  5. Biological
• Geophysical

  >originating from solid earth

  >earthquakes

  >landslides

  >volcanic activity
• Hydrological

  >caused by occurrence, movement and distribution of water on earth

  >flashflood

  >avalanche
• Meteorological

  >relating to weather conditions

  >cyclones

  >storm surge
• Climatological

  >relating to climate

  >extreme temperature

  >drought

  >wildfire
• Biological

  >exposure to living organisms and their toxic substances they may carry

  >disease epidemic/pandemic

  >insect/animal plagues
• Types of Man made/Anthropogenic/Human generated disasters

  1. Complex human emergencies
  2. Technological disasters
  3. Temporary human shelter
• Complex Human Emergencies involves situations where populations suffer significant casualties as a result of war, civil strife, or other political conflict
• Complex Human Emergencies some disasters are the result of a combination of forces such as drought, famine, disease and political unrest that displace millions of people from their homes
• Technological Disasters large numbers of people, property, community infrastructure, and economic welfare are directly and adversely affected by major industrial accidents, unplanned release of nuclear energy, and fires or explosions from hazardous substances such as fuel, chemicals, or nuclear materials
• Transitional Human Shelters are rapid, post-disaster shelters made from materials that can be upgraded or reused in more permanent structures, or that can be relocated from temporary sites to permanent locations
• Internal Disasters cause disruption of normal hospital function due to injuries or deaths of hospital personnel or damage to the facility itself, as with a hospital fire, power failure or chemical spill
• External Disasters are those that do not affect the hospital infrastructure but tax hospital resources due to numbers of patients or types of injuries
• Key elements of disaster

  >hazard

  >vulnerability/exposure

  >capacity
• Hazards "Phenomena that pose a threat to people, structure, or economic assets and which may cause a disaster. They could be either man-made or naturally occurring in our environment."
• Vulnerability is the condition determined by physical, social, economic and environmental factors or processes which increase the susceptibility of a community to the impact of hazards
• Capacity is the combination of all the strengths and resources available within a community, society or organization that can reduce the level of risk, or the effects of a disaster
• Capacity may include physical, institutional, social or economic means as well as skilled personal or collective attributes such as 'leadership' and 'management'
• Capacity may also be described as capability
• Magnitude of the disaster depends on

  >the severity of the natural event (hazard)

  >the quantity of exposure of the elements at risk (lives and properties)

  >vulnerability level or quality of exposure
• Disaster nursing can be defined as "the adaptation of professional nursing knowledge, skills and attitude in recognizing and meeting the nursing, health and emotional needs of disaster victims."
• The overall goal of disaster nursing is to achieve the best possible level of health for the people and the community involved in the disaster
• Disaster Management a collaborative term used to encompass all activities undertaken in anticipation of the occurrence of potentially disastrous event, including preparedness and long term risk reduction measure
• Pre-Disaster Phase

  A. Preparedness- includes assessments of risks, training and program planning to prevent a disaster if possible"

  Aim: to make people both aware of particular local risk and ready to respond promptly to specific disaster in their area
• Pre-Disaster Phase

  B. Alert Period- refers to the time when disaster is developing and when it has not yet hit the community. Threats are detected, warnings are issued, and evacuation is facilitated

  Aim: to ensure that food is available and people are able to secure/buy/get what they need
• Disaster Phase

  >Response- the period immediately following the sudden disaster when exceptional measures have been taken to search and find survivors, as well as to meet their basic needs for shelter, water, food and medical care

  Activities:

  1. rapid assessment of extent of damage and injury
  2. establishment of medical triage centers
  3. search and rescue operations for those trapped
  4. appropriate medical treatment of those with injuries
• Post Disaster Phase

  A. Rehabilitation- operation and decision taken after the disaster with a view to restoring stricken community to its former living conditions while encouraging and facilitating the necessary adjustment caused by disaster

  Activities:

  1. evacuate survivors and provide shelter
  2. provide adequate food and clean water
  3. continue mortality/morbidity surveillance
  4. re-establish PHC service ad establish nutritional survey
• Post Disaster Phase

  B. Mitigation-the collective term used to encompass all the action taken to disaster and long term reduction of risk and hazards. Usually follows after a disaster has affected a community
• Office of Emergency Management coordinates the disaster relief effort at state and local levels
• Incident Command System is a management tool to organize personnel, facilities, equipment and communication in an emergency situation
• CDC is the agency for disease prevention and control and it supports state and local health departments. The American Red Cross provides additional support