Abstract
This project serves to focus on the country of Saudi Arabia and how the nation, handles school preparedness when it comes to disasters. Saudi Arabia is a developing country. The researcher argues that more need to be done in making sure children are protected in a developing society when a disaster happens. Some of the disasters explored in the discussion include fires, earthquakes, hurricanes and terrorist attacks. The researcher believes that while there is potential to rectify this issue, more future research needs to be done. In the exploration of the topic, the author found that there were vulnerabilities in many schools in cities across the country of Saudi Arabia. The goal is to bring awareness to government and school officials to make children safe during catastrophic events. The project includes a detailed account of how to engage the country of Saudi Arabia in ensuring safety for its students.
Training Program among High Schools in Disaster Preparedness
Veenema defines disaster as a sudden event that causes loss of life or property (2007). Disaster is always unexpected, so to avoid its consequences people must look ahead to prepare themselves to survive. According to Hendricks, Pettibone, & Redleaf Press, disaster preparedness are the continuous organizing, planning, training and equipping survive catastrophes (2015). It is the process of taking relevant steps and measures to prepare for disaster as well as reduce its effects on people and property. This work focusses on the process of helping high schools prepare for disaster. An example of a catastrophe is a fire break out in a school. In the case of a fire, people would have different reactions; there could be a response to a loss of life. (Kramer, 2009).
Many students, teachers, and staff members have lost their lives because of failing to prepare for disasters (Brooks, 2014). The main reason is that they assume that disaster will never strike at their schools Focus on disaster management among high school's students is one major concern among the administrative staff in the U.S. Many people require proper training and control measures on how to handle the situation when it occurs. It is one of the major natural effects that can lead to massive loss of life and property. Examples of disasters include floods, drought, infectious diseases, fire, terrorism and volcanic eruption. People often ignore the value of emergency preparedness until disaster strikes. It is time for society and schools to shift their minds towards saving as many lives as possible because high schools, teachers, and students cannot afford to be passive observers and commentators of catastrophic events.
The need for training programs for disaster preparedness in state schools is a step towards the reduction of loss of life and property. It is also a measure that will equip high schools with the knowledge, skills and equipment to survive future disasters both in school and outside the school. It is also an opportunity to create awareness of the value of emergency preparedness and rid society of the mindset that disaster cannot happen to them. Achieving the above involves creating a training program that focuses on disaster preparedness among high schools.
The United States Department of Education came up with emergency management guidelines for schools (Reilly & Markenson, 2011). The guidelines focus on ‘mitigation and prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery.’ They also provide the connection between schools, the local communities, national authorities and emergency response services (Reilly & Markenson, 2011). The department released funding to implement these guidelines, but many schools lacked access to those funds because they lacked the capacity to access the funds or use them efficiently. For these reasons, disaster preparedness guidelines were established, but the implementation of those guidelines failed to trickle down to the schools. That informs one of the primary causes of the need to create health and safety awareness programs on disaster management among students. The plans will reflect the implementation of the guidelines, but through the initiative of volunteers in the community (Stanley, Bennecoff & Sigma Theta Tau International, 2015).
Training programs will allow high school communities to learn about disaster preparedness and reduce the ignorance surrounding the matter. The programs will equip high schools with the knowledge and information on how to respond to various catastrophic scenarios. The information will, therefore, help save lives in case a disaster occurs. Training programs also offer room for supervision and practice of the information on emergency preparedness. The program enables students to learn from instructors and ask questions without fear. The students and staff can work through simulations and provide the best options for surviving different catastrophic scenarios.
Training programs for high schools offer a strategic opportunity to pass essential disaster preparedness information to the community and ensure that all members of society have some information about emergency preparedness. According to Bradley, the argument is that students will share the information with their families and so will staff members (2011). Eventually, all community members will have some clues on the appropriate response when a disaster occurs. High school students also get most of their information from their peers and the internet, and that creates the need to provide accurate information on healthcare awareness in disaster preparedness (Kollek, 2012). The reason is that the Internet may provide information that students interpret incorrectly. Potential healthcare methods delivered in emergency training seminars can range from what to eat in case of food shortage in a disaster, how to properly cover both neck and head, drinking water, applying bandages, CPR, and controlling the spread of pathogens to avoid disease after the natural disaster.
Purpose
The goal of the project is to create a healthcare awareness program among high school students and raise awareness of health concerns during emergency preparedness. The project focuses on a health awareness program because many high schools have information about disasters like fire outbreaks but few programs focus on health awareness. The information gap on health awareness during emergency preparedness suggests the need for this project. The information will benefit high school students both in the present and future. A health awareness program for disaster preparedness in secondary schools equips students and staff with knowledge that can save lives (Duffy, 1990).
The project aims to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of emergency disaster response among students. The implementation of the project includes training programs for first aid and emergency response. The project also involves the development of an emergency response training program that students must follow when a disaster occurs in the form of a manual whereby detailed steps and procedures will be given for each type of potential disaster. Such responses and policies focus on saving as many lives as possible and preserving the health of disaster victims.
Need for the project
Emergency management does not only involve responding to a catastrophe. It also means sharing information, setting up early warning systems, mobilizing resources and managing information (Gupta, 2008). Disasters have a devastating impact on populations that warrants’ actions that transcend disaster response. There is a need for sharing knowledge on disaster hazards and risks, and that provide the first need for the study. Training programs on health awareness, provide the opportunity to share knowledge on disaster preparedness and contribute to the preparation. Kollek says that there is a need for a study on healthcare awareness programs on disaster preparedness among students because society can have access to information on the same (2012). In other words, parents can add to the chaos in the midst of an emergency if they do not know how to find their children and healthcare professionals will not know the most efficient routes to take in treating students if there is no collaborative planning.
Creating awareness is the first step towards disaster preparedness because students will know the hazards and risks to look out for and the appropriate responses to take. The information on healthcare awareness will lead to saving more lives since students know the measures that will increase the chances of survival for disaster victims (Cefalu, 2014).
The project involves taking action to help build the resilience of students in the face of catastrophe. When an accident occurs, the responses of fear or flight kick in and many students lose their lives in the confusion (Duffy, 1990). Scenarios like those of active shooters in schools have contributed to the loss of so many students who did not know how to respond. Some ran off and died because of being hit by stray bullets while others froze and got shot. It is such instances that indicate the need for programs that builds the resilience of students when disasters occur. The need to ensure that more students can survive catastrophic events is real because children are the future of the community. Students also need preparation because disasters are sudden, and their resilience contributes to their survival. Students with resilience will survive disasters in the future, and that validates the study (Graham, 2006). The argument is that students with knowledge on how to survive disasters will grow up with basic information that will help them in future. Such students will be able to remain calm during disasters and save both their lives and those of others.
The project is important because it will reduce the impact of future hazards (Kollek, 2012). Healthcare awareness programs on disaster preparedness, provide information that will allow students to respond appropriately in the future. It means that more people will have the skills and knowledge to get through catastrophic events unscathed or with minimum injuries. It also means that more people will be able to offer help to other community members and save their lives. Students will thus be able to reduce future suffering and minimize future impacts of disasters and hazards (Schwartz, 2009).
It is essential to conduct this project because it focuses on students’ emergency needs. Many programs focus on adults and other community members, but fail to identify and meet the needs of students before, during and after catastrophic events. Disasters can have lasting physical and mental impacts on students, and that mandates training that ensures their security, safety and wellbeing. Stanhope and Lancaster say that when disaster preparedness teams conduct training with the public participants feel more secure and able to respond to a crisis (2014). Society places significant emphasis on training community members, but fails to give students due consideration. The assumption is that equipping parents with disaster preparedness knowledge and skills guarantee their sharing the same with their children. Society assumes the role of students in emergency preparedness. It is appalling because students also experience the suffering caused by disasters and catastrophic events and sometimes do so more than their families and community members (An, Alon, & Fuentes, 2015).
The project provides information that guides students on how to assess risks and take appropriate measures to protect themselves. Researchers and bodies interested in school disaster preparedness can also refer to the information and use it in developing programs that meet the needs of students from other regions as well as community members. The project contributes to a current educational effort on disaster preparedness, but adds to the research because it focuses on healthcare awareness. Healthcare recognition is a field that offers information on the measures to safeguard students from injury and provide first aid to injured victims (Cefalu, 2014). It is what separates this study from other studies offering training programs on disaster preparedness. This project brings in health care concerns during disaster scenarios like active school shooter cases and guidelines on the appropriate responses by students (Rodríguez & Aguirre, 2006).
Hazards like active shooter scenarios and other man-made disasters can happen in high schools. The possibility of such disasters warrants the need for this study. The argument is that training programs on healthcare awareness in disaster preparedness can help students in case such disasters happen. The programs would equip them with the knowledge and information to save their lives and those of others. Preparation is the only way to guarantee appropriate emergency responses in case such disasters happen (Rodríguez & Aguirre, 2006).
Literature review
More than 90% of American young people – more than 50 million students- attend class in elementary school, high schools, colleges, and universities. Schools are unique because they can reach a majority of the young people and thus require ready and efficient health programs. The need increases because of disasters and the need for efficient disaster preparedness (Brooks, 2014). Many of the health care concerns among students revolve around their behavior, and that information influences the programs on healthcare awareness. The United States has reported some cases of students shooting others after experiencing nervous breakdowns. Such cases confirm that students deal with the overwhelming issues and could easily trigger man-made disasters. Students in the modern era experience different challenges from those of past decades and that calls for constant updating of health care programs in schools (An, Alon, & Fuentes, 2015). Several years ago, health care concerns revolved around physical wellness, but the modern and contemporary school set up includes mental wellness in its health care concerns.
Schools that focus on effective health care programs encourage the use of all available resources to safeguard the health and well being of students (Gupta, 2008). The health care programs in such schools focus on health awareness and work towards ensuring that all students are healthy. Healthcare awareness involves partnering with healthcare professionals to ensure that students get accurate information about health care (Cefalu, 2014). Professionals also provide information and guidance on how students can take better care of themselves and ensure healthy living. Schools with health programs focus on creating a healthy environment to help students focus on academic excellence. The health care programs place emphasis on the provision of health services to students and staff. Schools with effective health programs can manage simple health complications within the school (Cefalu, 2014). Effective health programs also ensure that students receive first aid services, especially during emergencies or accidents.
Disaster preparedness in the school setting has a direct relation to the readiness for the day to the day emergencies (Duffy, 1990). Schools prepared to handle individual emergencies are more likely to handle disasters better than the schools that not prepared. School districts participate in the events that occur within and around schools because of the high population of students that spend their time on, or around the school. It means that schools have no choice but to participate in training in healthcare awareness programs on disaster preparedness.
Over 30 States of America report that they have laws or policies that require schools to have emergency plans and the majority of the schools in those districts report that they have those plans (Hendricks & Pettibone, 2015). The plans for emergency responses are very useful during disasters, but the schools lack to prepare for disasters (Reilly & Markenson, 2011). The majority only has plans to respond to disasters. Disaster preparedness offers a solution that focuses on the period before, during and after catastrophic events.
According to Hendricks, disaster preparedness focuses on meeting the needs of students before and after a catastrophe (2015). It is the foundation of the healthcare awareness program for students in this work. The purpose is to help students become active in preparing for disaster instead of passive victims responding to emergencies. Preparedness involves identifying and addressing students’ needs that may predispose them to hazards and risks (Shibutse, 2014). The involvement increases in cases of mental health care students and the physically challenged (Witte, 2015). It then follows that the level of preparedness differs depending on the particular needs of the students. When it comes to health care, students with medical conditions that might complicate their preparedness and response should be prepared to deal such complications. An example is that disaster preparedness urges diabetic students always to carry some extra insulin in case of an emergency or disaster (Reilly & Markenson, 2011). The aim is to ensure they survive until help arrives.
Healthcare awareness encourages people to be ready for disaster and respond appropriately to avoid the panic and confusion that usually follow disastrous events. Preparedness also encourages people to avoid responding to emergencies, but instead anticipate them and prepare accordingly (Kollek, 2012). That process involves creating and implementing disaster preparedness plans. Since disaster preparedness focuses on both natural and man-made disasters, it is essential to narrow down the training program. In this paper, the disaster preparedness plan focuses on healthcare awareness. It also goes further to create a health awareness program for students.
Methodology
The following methodologies require the precise role division in case the catastrophe. Provided that all people know how to act correctly from their own side, it will be easy to avoid the harsh consequences. From the students’ side, it is necessary to participate in all trainings their schools provided as well as the trainings held by “the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies” (“PreventionWeb”, 2009). Moreover, the students from the senior classes should be ready to teach the younger ones. Also, the students should inform their parents what they have learned regarding the disasters and the preparation for it.
As for parents, they must attend the board meetings at schools and “lobby the government official concerning the resources necessary for the school safety” (“PreventionWeb”, 2009). Parents, also, must participate in various training programs with their kids in terms of how to evaluate the risks of the coming and already come disaster. It is very important to share the experience of the emergency preparation, especially, if someone had already been in the situation of the loss of their children and other relatives during the catastrophe. In addition, parents should respond each school’s appeal in terms of the disaster preparedness and be ready for the constant cooperation with the educational institute.
As for the teachers, they should “enrich their knowledge on hazards, risk and how to implement disaster risk reduction. They can take the initiative to conduct learning session on disaster and its risk reduction, for example, on a weekly basis during school hours on a specific subject matter (geography, biology, etc.) bringing the students out of the classroom to learn and identify the risk zones and draw the risk map in their school environment” (“PreventionWeb”, 2009).
Only a coalition of all participants of the process of the disaster preparedness will bring the significant results in terms of timely reaction on any emergency. Schools should provide their own nets and the access to them to keep in touch with parents and children all the time. Groups in WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, etc, are welcome, because all ways of interaction should be taken. The government and local authorities should definitely sponsor and encourage such initiatives as well as supply the educational institutes with the educational materials and guides how to behave in case of any disaster.
Creating and implementing a healthcare awareness-training program first involved identifying the target population. High school students were the targeted population for the project. Many students are vaguely aware of the health concerns associated with disasters, but lack in-depth information about disaster preparedness or management. This project aims to educate students about the health problems associated with disasters and disaster preparedness. After identifying the target population, the project gathered information about the students. The information will include the geographical location of the school and how students communicate with each other. It is important to acquire the geographical location because, in a national preparedness survey, results depict schools located within the metropolitan were more prepared than the schools located in rural areas in almost every aspect measured (Graham, 2006). Regional disparities were also apparent. In fact, depending on geographical location, schools will be more or less prone to different types of natural disasters. For example, schools located along the fault in California will be at a higher risk for an earthquake while schools located in the tornado valley region will be at greater risk for experiencing a tornado. Determining how the students prefer to communicate is important because the plan will require a high level of effective communication amongst all parties involved. The project will discover that the principles is one, accountable for all duties of the members by following the regulations used in delivering information to everyone in authority. Using critical thinking to solve the problem is the second principle, and it builds self-confidence in a person to have a voice in addressing the challenging issue affecting people in the community. Lastly, is having a common- value oriented method that will operate as rules to obey in implementing and adapting to the situation, enabling teachers and students integrate their issues together in managing a safety environment for learning.
When such an avoided situations take place, parents, teachers, and donors have a role to play. For donors, they are required to fund educational projects and meetings for Disaster Risk Reduction and ensuring there is a stable standard in making codes of conduct for risk mitigation, safety, and support (Price, 2011). International organizations and non-governmental institutions should offer action plans for educators and society to improve the level of risk awareness through learning sessions during school learning hours and identifying dangerous zones around. Parents and teachers through their associations are requested to hold meetings and discuss the hazards within the schools, and ways that can be used to ensure the school is safe should a disaster take place. Many high school students communicate using social media and word of mouth. According to recent data published by the Pew Research Center, over 90 percent of teenagers’ access the Internet via their mobile phones daily and about 70 percent report using social media daily (Lenhart, 2015). Social media can be used in creating awareness during a disaster when communication is difficult.
Healthcare awareness for disaster preparedness hopes to transform available knowledge into an action plan to reduce risks of disastrous occurrences (Schwartz, 2009). The awareness program will differ from other programs because it will consider the adoption of risk reduction measures as well as the awareness creation. The plan will define the specific actions that students need to take to prepare for disaster (Hendricks & Pettibone, 2015). It is also important to convince the students that their actions will be effective in risk reduction. The program will help students believe in their abilities to implement the disaster preparedness tasks.
The project will partner with health care professionals to ensure students receive accurate information by holding a biannual meeting for health care professionals whereby school administrators will lead an emergency disaster simulation. The healthcare awareness program will then focus on two major areas that will include; mitigation and prevention, as well as preparedness (Elg, Klara, & Kollberg, 2013). The program will focus on the two most critical areas because they affect students’ health. They also offer a strategic guideline that ensures the effectiveness of the healthcare awareness program. The action plan will revolve around the two guidelines, and all activities will fall in the specific categories.
Mitigation and Prevention
Mitigation and prevention require the establishment of goals and measures of success for the program. It is critical to the success of the plan that the students are directly involved in developing this aspect because it allows students to own the training program and contribute effectively. The mitigation and prevention category will also entail the sharing of experiences in catastrophic events amongst students as a means to avoid certain effects of disastrous events rather than simply generate more response effort (An, Alon, & Fuentes, 2015). From school shootings to epidemics, there are steps that schools can take to lessen the danger of these events occurring in high schools.
Focusing on disaster preparedness the students will identify the health hazards and measures to mitigate them. They will work with the project coordinator to come up with creative risk prevention measures. An example will be improvising a bigger can to put water for washing hands before students eat their snacks. The category will also include learning and practicing skills like creating drainage channels for rainwater to avoid breeding of mosquitoes, which is a health hazard.
Training the students in basic first aid, emergency communication and light search and rescue skills will equip them with knowledge in the event of a disaster (Reilly & Markenson, 2011). The students will practice these skills using simulations, drills and pretend play. The techniques will ensure that students know what to do when a disaster occurs. An example will be training students on cough and sneeze etiquette, which will come in handy in case of an influenza outbreak. The program will include informal education where the instructor will use brief moments to stimulate the students’ thinking and engage them in actions to increase safety.
Preparedness
The preparedness category involves coming up with crisis teams and clearly defining their roles. The category will involve working with both the students and staff members to create the crisis teams. The students will choose the members of the following crisis teams early warning, evacuation, first aid, search, and rescue, site security (Kollek, 2012). The students in the early warning team will have an adult as the head of the team and will be looking out for health warning signals. An example is they will be visiting the school health services to find out how many students will be complaining of illnesses like the flu. It is important to clarify that all disasters put human life and health at risk and thus the early warning signals will also include other disasters (Aldinger, & Whitman, 2009). The rapid alert team will also inform the students within the school as well as emergency services outside the school.
The evacuation team will identify safe zones around the school and inform the rest of the students and staff members. The team will also make an evacuation plan and appoint buddy adults who will implement the evacuation plan. The students in the teams will explain the evacuation plan to the rest of the students and will keep reminding them of the evacuation process. In this category, students and staff will participate in mock drills and teachers will practice how to lead the students to the safety zones. The preparedness will be useful for example, during fire outbreaks. The evacuation team will also conduct head counts and will inform the emergency rescue teams about any missing persons. The students will practice the drills with the staff members until everyone understands his or her role (Elg, Klara, & Kollberg, 2013).
The first aid team will receive intense training other than the general training for all the students. The role of the team will be to set up a first aid post and work with the evacuation team to offer first aid to people. The adults on the team will establish and maintain contact with nearby hospitals and organize transportation to the hospitals by coordinating with the local emergency medical services. They will also be responsible for the health of students in the team and ensure they receive debriefing and psychological support. The search and rescue and security teams will comprise of adults only. The adults will join the team on a volunteer basis and will receive training on how to search for missing persons while also taking care of themselves.
The training program will be held in the course of several weeks, and it will involve partnering with teachers, trainers, and school staff members. Part of the training program will take place in the classrooms, but the functional areas of the training will be held in the school compound. The training program will ensure that students have the skills and knowledge to deal with hazards and risks to health and safety (Shibutse, 2014). Activities like informal education will engage the students in risk reduction training and hopefully will make them desire to participate in disaster preparedness. Since students will not be able to fulfill all the roles defined in the preparedness teams, they will need the assistance of the adults and staff members. The staff members and adults will offer students support during the simulations and drills. Involving adults in the simulations and drills will help the students build their confidence and feel prepared to handle disaster even when the adults are too far away to help. It means that students will be able to help save the lives of other students and offer first aid until help arrives.
Discussion
The country of Saudi Arabia is the primary focus of this project. Due to this country’s geographical location, it is prone to natural disasters. The goal is to ensure that students are prepared in an area that is prone to geological catastrophes. These can be natural disasters as well as illnesses and other catastrophes for schools. There has not been much research done on this subject, as most studies focus on areas such as the United States. However, it is important in a globalized world to ensure that preparedness is not just restricted to more modernized countries but developing ones as well. Experts believe that most Saudi Arabia schools are not prepared to deal with natural disasters. Such schools include both private and public (Momabi, & Salmi, 2012).
In the past ten years, there have been efforts to assist Saudi Arabia with disaster preparation for its schools. Lebovits (2006) provides an account of overseas missions by concerned researchers. A group of students from Hudson High in Boston was among 24 students who went on a mission to help bring disaster preparation awareness to countries like Saudi Arabia. The students decided to prove the effectiveness of the social nets such as Twitter or Facebook compared to the usual periodicals and news sources. They kept on track with their movements and thank to the notes on Twitter their parent could watch their kids, although it was an official adventure and mass media sources were responsible for the enlightening people about this event. These kinds of efforts are needed to bring more awareness in preparation for disasters. School zones are believed to be safe in certain parts of the world. For instance, in the United States, schools were built to sustain natural disasters like tornadoes and hurricanes. Many of these schools are used as shelters in times of disasters. The difference between the United States and underdeveloped or developing countries is the need to put forth proactive plans in plans when it comes to forecasting catastrophic events.
A stronger emphasis has been in Saudi Arabia due to its recent wave of natural disasters. Over the past few years, the country has experienced dust storms, flooding, and many parts of the country are exposed to earthquakes and volcanic eruption (Alshehri, Rezgui & Li 2013). The state’s response has caused concern from the public. In Alsheri & Rezgui 7 Li’s (2013) study, a survey conducted to receive responses on their public perception of how the citizens of the country believe the government was handling natural disasters. While most believe that natural disasters were a punishment from God, they still believed the government should be prepared. These two controversial opinions have an interesting dynamic. Though it looks up as a penalty, there still needs to be prepared in dealing with the disasters. It is particularly the case for children who are primarily innocent victims.
Training does not have to be only on natural disaster preparedness. Training can also focus on how to respond if a child becomes ill in class. Furthermore, it should be mandatory that all school officials know how to perform CPR and operate defibrillators. While these are not “mother earth” disasters, they still constitute tragic events. Encouraging volunteer work is also a way in which schools can prepare for natural disasters in Saudi Arabia. Volunteerism leads to awareness and education. Providing a public information plan can also help to reduce fatalities and injuries associated with natural disasters and their impact on schools. Providing public access to this information can engage the public as well. Maybe more parents would volunteer and help in schools. Consequently, the parents can educate their children at home about their knowledge on how to prepare properly for a disaster. Whatever the case, these are all necessary steps in leading to public awareness and preparation for schools.
Even acts as fire drills are instrumental in making sure that if a fire breaks out, there is less panic, and there is an order in place. However, studies show that many Saudi schools are in need of training and basic education when it comes to preparing for fires. During a fire in Jeddah in 2011, the non-practice of fire drills were exposed (Bashraheel, 2009). According to the findings, due to the ill-prepared nature of the school when it comes to fire, there were injuries sustained in a rush of students and faculty trying to flee the school. Experts note that the rush to escape with no orderly system is more dangerous than fires. For this kind of action, it is in its sense uncalled. Further reports state that the many schools lack fire detectors, smoke alarms and fire extinguishers (Bashraheel, 2009). The lack of such features is the cause why efforts are being made to make changes to avoid these situations.
Situations like the fire that occurred in Jeddah reflect on government officials as well. In moments of devastation that expose the weaknesses in protecting children, staff is in a position to ensure parents and citizens that policies will be implemented to change things. Then the "blame game" tends to happen. When this fire debacle happened, one official was quoted as saying, “We cannot ensure how strictly the schools are implementing the evacuation plans. Our duty is to give them instructions, and the school's administrator's duty is to make sure that evacuation process is put into the school system with regular drills and practice” (cite in Al-Jassem, 2011, para. 10).
While Saudi Arabia has not been as susceptible to natural disasters as other countries, have, within the past ten years the country has seen more than the usual events take place. Of course, the terror attacks cannot go ignored as a natural or catastrophic disaster. Asheri and Rezgui (2013) state, “given its geopolitical situation, the country has suffered from several terrorist attacks, including the 1979 Makkah mosque siege, the 1995 Riyadh bombing, the1996 Khobar bombing, and the 2003 Riyadh bombing” (p. 1815). Schools and children are not exempt when it comes to terror attacks. Furthermore, if this can happen in well-developed and technologically advanced countries like the United States and England, it can surely have occurred in developing countries like Saudi Arabia.
In January of 2002, a cyclone impacted Saudi Arabia. It was in conjunction with widespread rainfall. This occurrence was a phenomenon, as one has never happened since natural disasters have been recorded. The country was not prepared for a cyclone and failed at meeting post-disaster needs (Chakraborty, Mujumdar, Behera, Ohba, & Yamagata (2006). This kind of event is further proof that preparing for these kinds of natural disasters is essential. There is no predicting mother nature when these phenomena happen. Loertscher (2015) says interest in the way to prepare is always good planning. Therefore, a level of interest needs to be raised to begin the planning stages.
Consequently, there have been concerted efforts in addressing this issue of Saudi Arabia and other middle-eastern countries not being prepared for disasters. In the Mecca area, there have been recent studies that have attempted to explore this issue and offer concrete solutions on dealing with the problem. According to Momani & Salmi (2012), “In the Mecca region to address the threat of earthquakes through the identification of the preparedness of school buildings, the differences in the willingness of schools, and examine the relationship between the exposure to previous crises and readiness for future crises” (p. 463). This study offers effective strategies for overcoming the problem of lack of preparedness in schools for disasters such as earthquakes.
Identifying the preparedness of schools is a good strategy to ensure that they are equipped to deal with natural disasters like earthquakes. Building codes should be up to par, and there should set guidelines in place just in case an earthquake happens. Since earthquakes occur and are not rare occurrences researchers, find that making sure schools are equipped to protect students is important. Officials in Saudi Arabia remind the public that all schools need to have a permit with the Civil Defense. With this permit comes training from guards. However, research also shows that so many schools lack the tools promised by the Civil Defense (Bashraheel, 2009). Government officials need to be rigid in their expectations of college preparedness.
Another important part of this research dedicated to ensuring students are safe in the guise of earthquakes is knowing the difference in willingness among schools. While all schools are believed to be prepared for these circumstances, not all are willing to prepare their officials and students for a natural disaster. It needs to be taken up on a government level. Schools should be up to code and sanctioned if they are not. There needs to be a surveyor to assess the way in which schools are staying in compliance with prepared relief efforts. These assessments should take place at least twice a school year. It would be a step towards the right direction for the sake of the children. There is some plan in place in making sure this happens. According to Al-Jassem (2011), there are plans in place in some cities to send observers to schools to observe such essential practices as fire drills.
The exposure to previous crises should have an impact on how countries prepare for others. For example, when Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf coast in the United States, the entire country came together to work through the disaster. Organizations like FEMA were set in place to prepare for other crises just in case something of this magnitude was to happen again. The United States assessed Hurricane Katrina as a lesson learned. The unthinkable can happen, and it did occur in one of the most powerful countries in the world. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Saudi Arabia in most cases. Research surmises “Despite the fact that Saudi Arabia has vivid memories of fires that had caused damage in Jeddah, Makkah, Riyadh and Dammam, people still don't know how to react in emergencies, especially in schools, hospitals, malls, and even companies, a top Civil Defense official said” (Al-Jassem, 2009, para. 1). The lack of awareness and responses is a disaster within itself.
The first step is an attitude and action in which a person’s perception is built based on his or her capacity on the event at hand and collective works in disaster management efficiently. Secondly, is the school policy whereby decisions are made by supporting school management in school policy to give guidelines and direction used in implementing the activities. Thirdly, is preparedness planning that ensures a faster and efficient action is taken into account should a disaster occurs such as establishing early and accurate warning system in making consideration to the local context.
Finally is the mobilization of resource facilities through the human resource department that will help them with some financial support in handling first aid in the disaster management. Other stakeholders such as the local community members and non-governmental organizations equipped in dealing with disasters are allowed to participate and help the school recover from the occurrence promptly after receiving an emergency call (Chung et al., 2009).
Also, values and principles are also important in developing school-based preparedness on the disaster that should be followed as they act as guidelines for developing a solution to a certain disaster issue. The values include independence that maximizes the utilization of community and school resources to reduce over-dependency on resources from the external environment such as foreigners. A cultural change is another value which its aim is to teach and create a new climate of change from safety to resilience and paying respect to primary human rights issues.
Recommendations
The United States has shown that through trial and error situations are learned. Catastrophic events like 9/11 in New York City and Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, caused many deaths and much devastation. The country did not allow this and other catastrophes to stop it from progressing. What it was made them aware of the vulnerabilities in the infrastructure and forced government officials to put policies in place to ensure the protection of citizens.
The Saudi Arabia government is recommended to find effective ways of making sure policies are reinforced by school and government officials when it comes to natural disasters. The core concern here is children and their safety. It is up to everyone to work together in making this come to fruition. Schools should have all necessary equipment. To be in disasters is one thing, but to have fatalities and casualties due to incompetence and negligence resulted from a lack of precaution matters is a different matter. The future research is recommended to deal with this issue. Future research can lead to innovative strategies in reinforcing security measures in schools. Technology needs to be used in these circumstances. The use of technology can circumvent aging infrastructures. We recommend bringing schools up to code where they can become shelters and safe havens in times of catastrophes. Momani & Salmi (2012) believe that:
“It is important to prepare a public emergency plan for disasters and crises and to train school administrators and teachers to prepare contingency plans for disaster management in school. Finally, we need to prepare disaster awareness programs benefiting from the public and private media, the internet, and workshops through utilizing the experiences of other developed countries in disasters and crisis management especially for schools.” (p.463)
Public emergency plan and others like it can get the public involved in curbing this issue. It is important to be proactive and not reactive at the time of disaster. Being reactive is what leads to panic as it did in the fire that caused harm to children in Jeddah because there was no real plan in place to protect them in escaping the fire. In addition to a public emergency plan, the researchers suggest that awareness program benefitting public and private schools is needed to move forward. Even though public and private schools differently educate when it comes to academics, they should not be separate from different or lack of policies when it comes to disaster efforts. In the case of Saudi Arabia, both public and private schools need an overhaul of policies for the preparation of disasters.
Finally, as articulated in the conclusion and research, there need to be workshops available to make Saudi Arabian officials aware of how other developing and developed countries have handled relief efforts in preparation of catastrophic circumstances. There needs to be money allocated towards this plight of disaster preparedness in schools. The money will be spent wisely then. Consulting with government officials from countries like Japan and the United States would help educate officials on where, to begin with these policies. There are signs that Saudi Arabia is willing to partner with other countries in order to assist in their disaster reliefs. This was illustrated in 2010 when Pakistan needed help in assisting flood victims (Saudi Arabia to set up, 2010).
Implications
The implications suggested in this research is clear. Saudi Arabia is responsible for the safety of its citizens in times of disaster. This is particularly the case for children who depend on adults to be leaders and take and treat their security with the utmost importance. If businesses are coming together to assess how to prepare for natural disasters, then certainly educational organizations can as well. Business risks are increasing due to physical and man-made occurrences, so they are creating ways to avoid capital loss (Momani & Fadil, 2013). School-based copying programs are also vital in ensuring the mental health of students after disaster strikes. Therefore, the implication should not stop in preparation for a disaster, but also the development of the after effects (Kim, Kang, S. & Kang, K & 2014).
The point of this study is to bring awareness to issues that impact children on a global level. Ensuring the safety of children should be a universal concern. Researchers work tirelessly on creating ways to not only male citizens aware of the devastation of natural disasters, but they collaborate to conjure up solutions to the problem. The implication for future studies is rather positive. Experts are willing to work together to inform officials that waiting until a disaster happens is not strategizing. The strategy happens beforehand in order to decrease the risk of casualties and fatalities. Even in the event that lives are lost because of unforeseen and controllable events, they should never be a lost because the government whose primary job is to protect failed to do so.
It is safe to say that Saudi officials are making efforts to explore new policy plans proactively when it comes to the protection of school children in natural disasters. This should be commendable and implies that it is not that the officials do not care, they need support as well as a developing country in order to help fund and explore ways of protecting the children.
Conclusions
It is evident that the country of Saudi Arabia needs more improvement practices and implementations when it comes to the safety of children. After reviewing some of the incidents where a natural disaster has struck, the government in Saudi Arabia needs to revisit certain policies and hold government and school officials responsible when the policies are not being adhered to. The fire that injured children in Jeddah was a result of negligence on school officials not protecting children. These kinds of disasters are inevitable, yet the goal is to make sure in handling these situations panic does not set in. Natural disaster preparedness should be treated in a decent order. Momani & Salmi (2012) believe that “It is important to know whether or not the government adopts, or tries to implement, earthquake mitigation measures in order to eliminate or reduce the long-term risk to people and property from earthquake hazards and their impacts” (p. 470). This same sentiment should be true for other disasters as well. The government and school officials are not working together to ensure that the proper channels are being taken to ensure the safety of children in these disasters. No child should suffer a fatality or become injured as a result of the school being ill-prepared during disasters.
It is a shared notion among researchers that not enough is being done to curtail unnecessary incidents due to not having a system in place to avoid the tragedy that can erupt in natural disasters. During a flood in Saudi Arabia there were 121 casualties and billions of dollars in damage. This disaster forced Saudi officials to deal with changing public policy related to these kinds of unfortunate occurrences (Alshehri, Rezgui & Li., 2013). Nonetheless, even something of this magnitude may have to happen in order to save future lives. The frequent occurrence of natural and man-made disasters informs the need for training programs for disaster preparedness among students. Both physical and man-made disasters put human life and health at risk and mandate a particular focus on healthcare awareness in schools. Training programs on healthcare awareness among students equips them with the knowledge and skills to save their lives and those of others. It offers students the opportunity to participate in disaster preparedness and build their resilience to diseases and other forms of disasters. The training program on health awareness among students focuses on disaster mitigation and prevention as well preparedness. Students learn how to prepare for disasters and thus, formulate adequate responses by forming teams with defined roles (Rodríguez & Aguirre, 2006). The training project discussed herein partners with staff members of the schools, health care experts as well as disaster preparedness experts. The project involves approaches like active student participation, informal education, drills and simulations to help the awareness become as real as possible. The project also includes a follow-up plan to refresh and update the students’ knowledge of healthcare techniques for survival during disasters. Creating healthcare awareness among students reduces the exposure to hazards and risks that affect health care (Schwartz, 2009). Right after we present the project and its efficiency, and practical significance are recognized, there are some plans to make the input into the ministry in Saudi and hold some possible events are modeling the emergency situation and the ways to handle it.
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