| Learning Objective #1: Describe a new nursing disaster preparedness certificate program | |||
| Learning Objective #2: List lessons learned in Israel related to disaster response following terrorist activity and ways to apply these lessons to U.S. initiatives |
Issue: Traditional disaster preparedness efforts focus on first responders rather than nurses. With the increasing threat of non-conventional disasters, such as a chemical or biological terrorism attack, new initiatives in nursing education are needed. Project: At Saint Louis University, the Centers for the Study of Bioterrorism and Emerging Infections and School of Nursing jointly developed a certificate program for nurses on disaster preparedness. This program will evolve into a Masters Degree Program in Disaster Preparedness starting in fall, 2003. In preparation for this program, SLU faculty/staff visited the Hadassah hospitals in Israel to study preparedness and response strategies for terrorism. Results: Hadassah arranged a five-day program designed to meet the objectives developed for the SLU certificate program. The program consisted of presentations, sharing of research findings and hands-on experiences for participants. Lessons Learned: Because of Israeli citizens’ personal perceived risk and actual experience, Israeli nurses are much more prepared for a mass casualty attack than the US, regardless of whether the attack is traditional, biological or chemical terrorism. All healthcare and public health professionals are fluent in emergency management and incident command. In addition, everyone is required to participate in up to twenty annual exercises. Patient flow, decontamination, mental distress, surveillance, childcare, and education issues and strategies are all taught and emphasized. Certain Israeli preparedness strategies may not be feasible in the US due to societal and legal issues, but many other lessons learned were incorporated into a new disaster management curriculum that was made available in Jan, 2003.
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