Role of Community Health Nurse in an Emergency

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Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response Lori Godsey Walden University Family Community and Population Based Care NURS 4010, Section 13 July 26, 2013 Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response Emergency preparedness is vital to the safety and functionality a community. Whether it be obtaining and assisting a surrounding community population, or by organizing the unforeseen catastrophic challenges of your local community. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how the professional nurse and other community health care professionals evaluate and provide decision making skills and strategies in the event of a hurricane. The Role of the Nurse Disasters can happen at any time. Some are more prevalent than others. In the south Texas region, Hurricane preparedness is top of the line since Katrina hit in 2005. It has put a new definition to hurricane preparedness. Hurricane season for the Atlantic Ocean is every year starting June 1st thru November 30th. There are four stages of disaster management. They consist of mitigation, preparedness, response and recover. (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2012) “Mitigation or prevention is an emergency management term for reducing risks to people and property from natural hazards before they occur” (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2012, p. 512) The nurse may have different roles with the public health nurse in particular to coordinate in conjunction with local, state, and national health agencies organizing and planning in the event of infectious disease or outbreaks. Secondly, preparedness comes in three different elements; personal preparedness, professional preparedness, and community preparedness. Personal preparedness involves getting yourself ready and available to respond quickly in the event of a natural disaster. This includes everything from children/family, house/belongings, finances, and health. The

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