There are many types of disaster that could damage both property and lives. Disasters can be in a form of natural hazards or man-made hazards, such as typhoons, floods, earthquake, fire, and even harmful chemical spills. Therefore, it is important that every facility of an organization has its disaster plan in order to prevent extensive damages, thus will increase the chance to save lives by being prepared against any forms of disaster. The purpose of this writing is to create a disaster plan for a healthcare facility that serves as guidelines in case of a disaster. We argue that being prepared to any types of disaster will help save lives and prevent large damage to the facility. Disaster planning is an important approach in every healthcare facility. In fact, it is part of the Standards of Practice as well as the Standards of professional Performance (American Nurses Association, 2008). Therefore, it is important that health facilities have a disaster plan that will provide a safe health environment. The disaster plan must critically include the following:
Protective actions that will save lives – This action encompasses four major acts, such as evacuation, sheltering, lockdown, and shelter-in-place (ready.gov). For evacuation, there should be a warning to all staff whenever a disaster strikes. The warning must be heard across all units of the facility using horns, alarms, or a special announcement. On the other hand, sheltering means that everyone must be placed in the safest part of the facility during a disaster event, such as tornado, flood, or typhoon. Every facility must have a dedicated space that can be used as a temporary shelter for all staff. For example, terrorism or any violent attacks. They must lock all the doors and if possible, provide a barricade that will protect them from dangers outside the room.
Disaster Plan Information in place – The disaster plan must be across all areas of the facility to remind the staff about what to do during the disaster. The guidelines must show a step-by-step procedure on how to activate self-protection, evacuation plan, and even the emergency telephone numbers so that first responders will be able to respond swiftly during the disaster.
Creation of Emergency Management Team – Every facility must have its own Emergency Managers who are trained to respond to any forms of disasters. Their primary responsibility is to guide the staff and clients who are caught inside the facility during the emergency. They must be responsible for developing the actual disaster response plan through creation of guidelines safety standards for the facility.
Coordination with government emergency services – Emergency managers may coordinate with the public emergency responders in order to stabilize the situation. This is normally applicable with man-made disasters, such as hazardous chemical spills and other similar events.
Training and Education – Every team member must be aware of the disaster plan. Posters and reminders are not enough to serve as part of the plan, but there should be an actual training and education. It can be done in a form of emergency drill, or re-enactment of possible emergency inside the facility. In that case, every staff will have the knowledge and understanding of what an actual disaster may look like, making them more prepared in the future.
Disaster planning is not a mere creation of the actual plan, it involves critical actions that are essential for saving lives in case of emergency. Disaster may happen any time, which is why, the plan, including the critical guidelines must be part of daily practice to ensure the overall safety.
References
American Nurses Association. (2008). Adapting Standards of Care Under Extreme Conditions[PDF]. Retrieved from http://nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/WorkplaceSafety/Healthy-Work-Environment/DPR/TheLawEthicsofDisasterResponse/AdaptingStandardsofCare.pdf
Ready.gov. (n.d.). Emergency Response Plan | Ready.gov. Retrieved from https://www.ready.gov/business/implementation/emergency
