Abstract
BackgroundThere is limited research on preparation of health care workers for disasters. Prior research addressed systems-level responses rather than specific institutional and individual responses.MethodsAn anonymous online survey of hospital employees, who were grouped into clinical and non-clinical staff, was conducted. The objective of this study was to compare perceptions of clinical and non-clinical staff with regard to personal needs, willingness to report (WTR) to work, and level of confidence in the hospital‘s ability to protect safety and provide personal protective equipment (PPE) in the event of a disaster.ResultsA total of 5,790 employees were surveyed; 41 % responded (77 % were women and 63 % were clinical staff). Seventy-nine percent either strongly or somewhat agreed that they know what to do in the event of a disaster, and the majority was willing to report for duty in the event of a disaster. The most common barriers included ‘caring for children’ (55 %) and ‘caring for pets’ (34 %). Clinical staff was significantly more likely than non-clinical staff to endorse childcare responsibilities (58.9 % vs. 48 %) and caring for pets (36 % vs. 30 %, respectively) as barriers to WTR. Older age was a significant facilitator of WTR [odds ratio (OR) 1.49, 95 % CI: 1.27-1.65]. Non-clinical staff was more confident in the hospital’s ability to protect safety and provide PPE compared to clinical staff (OR 1.43, 95 % CI: 1.15-1.78).ConclusionClinical and non-clinical staff differ in the types of barriers to WTR endorsed, as well as their confidence in the hospital’s ability to provide them with PPE and guarantee their safety.
Highlights
There is limited research on preparation of health care workers for disasters
Logistic regression was used to determine the association among willingness to report to work in the event of a disaster, participant characteristics and personal needs, whereas the factors affecting health care workers’ level of confidence in the hospital’s ability to provide protective equipment (PPE) were examined using cumulative logistic regression models [8]
Non-clinical staff were less likely to indicate childcare responsibilities [odds ratio (OR) 0.64;
Summary
There is limited research on preparation of health care workers for disasters. Prior research addressed systems-level responses rather than specific institutional and individual responses. Health care workers are increasingly faced with the constant threat of confronting both natural and man-made disasters. Despite increased public awareness of the threat of MCIs, the emphasis on preparing the US health care workforce for such disasters is inadequate [1,2]. Most of the data on disaster preparedness is based on studies of systems-level responses rather than specific institutional and individual responses. Kaji and colleagues in 2008 suggested that a multi-pronged approach targeted at individual health care workers and hospitals would be needed to adequately characterize overall institution preparedness [4]
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