226589 Are We Ready? The Role of a Public Health Nurse in the Event of a Disaster

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Lisa Crowder, RN, PHN, MSN , Public Health Nursing Administration, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Lucille M. Rayford, RN, PHN, MSN , Public Health Nursing Administration, Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA
Soraya Montoya, RN, CNS, MSN/MPH , Nursing Admin - Education and Professional Development Unit, County of Los Angeles, Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Diana Sosa, MSN/MPH , Public Health Nursing Administration, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Kendra A. Bell, RN, MSN (c) , Public Health Nursing Administration, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Over the past decade, events such as the responses to Hurricane Katrina, and now the Haiti crisis, have all rekindled interest in strengthening the nation's public health infrastructure and in particular, have shown the importance of public health emergency preparedness. Therefore, in the event of a disaster, it is imperative that all nursing staff be prepared to provide emergency medical care to the affected population. Among many delegated functions, PHNs are skilled professionals who are known as the experts in population based practice and disease investigation. However, in the event of a major disaster where hundreds, or even thousands of people need care, will the LAC-DPH public health nurse workforce be ready to assist?

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LAC-DPH) Nursing Administration recognizes the need to ensure that all PHNs will have the skills necessary to assist in the event of a major disaster. Therefore, LAC-DPH Nursing Administration is in the process of developing a RN Refresher Course program. This program will include a set of core skills that are not normally performed by the PHN on a daily basis. Skills include, but are not limited to: Intravenous Therapy, Wound and Stoma Care, Physical Assessment, Triage and Care of the Diabetic Client.

The program will consist of instructional modules which will include curriculums, PowerPoint presentations and live face to face skills check off sessions. During these sessions, nursing staff will be required to re-demonstrate the assigned skill in the presence of an instructor. The program will be implemented in September of 2010 and our goal is to ensure that by May 2011, 90% of all PHNs employed by LAC-DPH will have completed and sucessfully passed the RN Refresher Course.

In conclusion, catastrophic events have often placed public health nurses at the forefront to be well prepared to provide emergency medical care to affected populations in crisis. The overall outcome of the RN Refresher Course program will help the PHN develop and maintain the nursing skills necessary to assist in the event of a disaster and is crucial to the future role of the PHN in LAC.

Learning Areas:
Basic medical science applied in public health
Ethics, professional and legal requirements
Public health or related nursing

Learning Objectives:
The learner will be able to discuss the importance of the Public Health Nurses' need to acquire/maintain nursing skills required to care for the population in the event of a disaster.

Keywords: Disasters, Roles

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I work with the Public Health Nursing Education and Professional Development Unit and we are rqponsible for providing a majority of trainings/orientations for the Public Health Nurse in the department.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 2040.0: Hot Topics in Public Health Nursing