Franklin County Disaster Analysis

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Disaster in Franklin County Western Governors University An incident command system aids in an organized response among several jurisdictions and agencies, creates common procedures for managing resources and allows for the collaboration of facilities, equipment, personnel, procedures, and communications operating within a shared organizational structure. Each public health professional plays a role in putting a disaster plan into action. The incident commander in the Franklin county disaster was the fire chief. The incident commander is responsible for establishing the departmental incident command system by appointing section chiefs and command staff (Olson, 2006). Within the incident command there is a public information…show more content…
In the Franklin county disaster, the nurse had to reach out to several supporting agencies to meet the needs of residents during the door to door interviews. Public works was contacted to get an estimated time frame that utilities such as water and electricity would be back up and running. Environmental health specialist were contacted to advise a resident about cleaning up household hazardous waste due to damage in the shed causing chemicals to mix and cleaning up after a flood (Disaster in Franklin, 2006). Social services were contacted to help a resident deal with her family responsibilities that was likely a problem prior to the storm but may feel worse due to the added stress of the storm recovery process. One house visit required the services of a translator for the nurse to complete the follow up assessment. Logistics and operations was also accessed to arrange for transport of residents to local area shelters until homes were safe to occupy and power was back on. Veterinary personnel can be accessed to assist with housing for pets while residents are in temporary shelters. The incident command team can assist the public health nurse in providing these resources as quickly as…show more content…
Nurses need to review the disaster history of their community, as well as how past disasters have affected the community’s health care delivery system (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2008). It is important for nurses to understand and gain the competencies necessary to respond in times of disasters before disaster strikes. The preparedness competencies should focus on personal preparedness, understanding roles, becoming acquainted with the health department’s disaster plan and communication equipment appropriate for disaster situations (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2008). Disaster and mass casualty drills and exercises are extremely valuable components of preparedness that can give nurses and other personnel opportunities to improve plans. Nurses should also identify limits to their own knowledge/skill/authority and identify key resources for referring situations that exceed those limits. Nurses trained in specialized practices may be called on to attend to things public health nurses do not practice on a daily basis. A disaster of any size relies on nursing collaborating with supporting agencies to take care of the needs of the public prior to, during and after a

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