Paper
Sunday, November 4, 2007
265
Willingness of Healthcare Workers to Report to Work in Disaster: The State of the Science
Mary W. Chaffee, ScD (h), MS, RN, FAAN, School of Nursing, University of Maryland Baltimore, Baltimore, MD, USA
| Learning Objective #1: Identify one consistent finding among the studies of willingness to report to work in disaster. |
| Learning Objective #2: Identify the most commonly used research methodology in studies of willingness to report to work in disaster. |
Willingness to report (WTR) to work in a disaster is an emerging area of science that has been explored only through the use of survey research methodology. Health care organizations, governments, and emergency planners have become increasingly focused on improving disaster preparedness in recent years. However, fewer than 10 studies have examined the single most important aspect of preparedness – whether people will report to work in a disaster.
There appear to be certain factors associated with willingness to report to work, including concern for personal and family safety and the type of disaster. While the findings from these first generation studies have been pioneering studies, there are significant gaps in the science and opportunities to reduce systematic and random error in future studies. This presentation will review the current state of the science, a critique of instruments used to gather data, and specific recommendations for future research. It is critical that disaster management policies and plans be developed based on evidence – and there is a significant gap in the knowledge that deserves rigorous scientific examination.