The lived experience of Australian nurses working in disaster environments - PhD progress

This presentation outlines the literature review, research question, methodology and progress of my PhD. Overall, this presentation provided a superficial outline of what I plan to undertake for this work.

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Understanding the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster

This article was published in Connections, outlining some key findings from a larger report relating to the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster. The full report from this research project can be located at: http://www.jamieranse.com/2011/09/understanding-willingness-of-australian.html



Ranse J. (2011). Understanding the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster. Connections [Royal College of Nursing, Australia – newsletter publication]. 14(4):6-7

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Rural health issues in disasters

I was invited by the Australian Capital Territory / Southern New South Wales Chapter of the Royal College of Nursing, Australia to present about disaster health. My presentation focused on the issues in rural health, specifically for nurses. My discussion focused on nurses' educational preparedness, willingness and role. Additionally, I discussed the agreements between nurses and government (in terms of leave and pay entitlements) and issues in disaster tourism.

  

Ranse J. (2011). Rural health issues in disasters; invited speaker for the RCNA Acute Care Conference, Wagga Wagga, NSW, 26th November.

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'Stressful jobs prove costly'

I was interviewed by a reporter from the Canberra Times, Phillip Thompson regarding my experience of being a ‘front line’ emergency service worker – particularly from an emergency nursing perspective. The interview focused on the stress related with the profession and the variety of available strategies to manage stress.

The published article ‘Stressful jobs prove costly’ outlines the cost of stress related leave from emergency services. Additionally, the article discusses my contribution regarding coping strategies and comments regarding the benefit of debriefing.

The published article generated some interesting discussions from persons who read the article. I refrained from commenting...

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Disaster health: An Australian nursing perspective

This presentation was delivered to delegates visiting the University of Canberra from the Mahidol University, Thailand. This presentation focused on what is known about the Australian disaster environment, from an Australian perspective. In particular, this presentation outlined the disasters Australian nurses have participated in, disaster nursing education, the nurses out-of-hospital role, in-hospital role and future research collaborative opportunities between the University of Canberra and Mahidol University.

Ranse J. (2011). Disaster health: An Australian nursing perspective; paper presented to delegates of the Mahidol University Thailand, University of Canberra, ACT, 21st October

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The role of new graduate nurses in disasters (workshop)

Shane Lenson assisted me in presenting this workshop to graduate nurses at Calvary Health Care ACT during a study day focusing on 'codes'. The workshop focused on 'code brown' or external disasters / emergencies. The workshop comprised of a short oral presentation (above) followed by a number of workshop activities. The activities focused on the role a graduate nurse may undertake during disasters. Broadly this included:
• Prioritisation of care
• Accommodating surge capacity
• Communication
• Business continuity (or continuing adequate patient care) during power, water and/or oxygen supply shortages.


Ranse J. (2011). The role of new graduate nurses in disasters; workshop presented to new graduate nurse at Calvary Health Care ACT, Canberra, ACT, 28th September.

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The lived experience of Australian nurses working in disaster environments - my PhD progress

This is my second PhD progress presentation. It outlines my progress in my PhD to date. In particular, it focuses on what we currently know about Australian nurses in the context of out-of-hospital disaster work, and the research methodology and method that will be used for my (current) proposed PhD plan. This presentation was delivered at the University of Canberra, Disciplines of Nursing and Midwifery Research Residential School, 5 October 2011.

Ranse J (2011). The lived experience of Australian nurses working in disaster environments; PhD progress presented at the University of Canberra, Disciplines of Nursing and Midwifery Research Residential School, 5th October.

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To work or not to work: An analysis of the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster

Laura Bahnisch presented on behalf of our research team, the key findings from our project that explored the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to attend their workplace in a disaster.

The recent extreme weather events in Queensland and Victoria highlight that natural disasters occur regularly in Australia. Arguably, the Australian health care system has had little experience with disasters that overwhelm health resources. This raises questions about the ability of health care providers to respond under conditions of increased demands and personal vulnerability. International experience, including earthquakes in Japan [2011], Christchurch [2011] and Haiti [2009], has shown that uncertainty about their safety and that of their family and friends may prevent nurses from attending work during a disaster. An understanding of the factors that enable or disable nurses’ disaster preparedness will underpin future disaster policy and planning for Australian and international health care organisations.

A study of the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster was conducted. A 3-phase mixed-method design was used, consisting of a national survey, focus groups and in-depth interviews with emergency nurses at four hospitals. This presentation builds upon preliminary results delivered at the 8th International Conference for Emergency Nurses (2010). The findings indicate that emergency nurses’ willingness to respond to disasters is dependent on a number of factors, including their out-of-work responsibilities, changes to their roles at work, their confidence in management, protective equipment and work teams, the information received, the type of disaster and the degree of risk involved. The nurses’ willingness also differs according to their age, family status, personal preparedness and disaster related qualifications. These and other factors will be examined, exploring the implications for individual nurses and planners.



Bahnisch L*, Arbon P, Cusack L, Ranse J, Shaban R, Hammad K, Considine J, Mitchelle B. (2011). To work or not to work: An analysis of the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster; paper presented at the 9th International Conference for Emergency Nurses, Adelaide, South Australia, 30th September.

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Industrial considerations for nurses responding to disasters

Shane Lenson presented on behalf of our research team, the key findings from our project that explored all Australian Nursing Enterprise Bargaining Arrangements / Agreements for the provision of entitlements for nurses who assist in a disasters.

 Shane Lenson presenting our work - will you get paid in responding to a disaster?

By definition, disasters are events that reply on human and/or physical resources from other jurisdictions to assist in response and recovery. Within the Australian out-of-hospital environment, nurses have been deployed from various States and Territories to assist in the response to events such as the Victorian Bushfires [2009] and the Queensland floods [2011]. Similarly, nurses have been deployed overseas to assist in events such as the Christchurch earthquake [2011], Samona tsunami [2009] and Sumatra-Andaman earthquake and tsunami [2004], just to mention a few. It is reasonable to assume, nurses are likely to continue a role in the health response to a disaster. However, consideration needs to be given to the industrial agreements for nurses when released from their normal employment arrangements to assist in a disaster event.

An evaluation of the various public hospital nursing employment agreements was undertaken in 2011, to discern the requirements, conditions, allowances and entitlements of nurses responding to disasters. This presentation will outline the findings from this evaluation. In particular the findings will highlight the major differences between States and Territories agreements in terms of disaster response provisions and entitlements. Findings will highlight the diverse range of information regarding disaster response in agreements; from an absence of any information, through to clear explanation regarding eligibility requirements, salary and leave entitlements. The diversity of conditions described within the agreements possesses a number of questions about the equity, suitability and workforce planning during times of disasters.

 Shane Lenson presenting our work

Lenson S*, Ranse J, Cusack L. (2011). Industrial considerations for nurses responding to disasters; paper presented at the 9th International Conference for Emergency Nurses, Adelaide, South Australia, 30th September.

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Understanding the Willingness of Australian Nurses to respond to a disaster

This final report of the project ‘Understanding the Willingness of Australian Nurses to Respond to a Disaster’ was launched at the 9th International Conference for Emergency Nurses, held in Adelaide on 29th September 2011. The launch included an overview of the report, and key findings.

Speakers at the launch (left-to-right): Professor Paul Arbon (Chief Investigator), Dr Julie Considine (Co-Investigator), and the Honourable John Hill MP, (South Australia, Minister for Health).

Arbon P, Cusack L, Ranse J, Shaban R, Considine J, Mitchell B, et al. (2011). Understanding the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster. Adelaide: Flinders University.

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Exploring the role of nurses during the ‘Black Saturday’ and Victorian bushfires of 2009 in Australia

Shane Lenson presented on behalf of our research team, the key findings from our project that explored the role of nurses who assisted in the 2009 Black Saturday and Victorian Bushfires.

The Black Saturday bushfires were a series of bushfires that burned across the Australian state of Victoria. Extreme bushfire-weather conditions, resulted in Australia's highest ever loss of life and property from a bushfire. A total of 173 people died, 414 were injured, over 2030 houses, and 3500 structures were destroyed. Nurses provided clinical care, amongst other activities, in the pre-hospital environment during these fires. To date, there is a lack of literature regarding the experience of nurses in this environment. As such, this research explored the experience of nurses who assisted in the pre-hospital environment during the Victorian bushfires.

This research was descriptive and exploratory in nature using semi-structure interview as a means of data collection. Twelve nursing members of St John Ambulance Australia participated in the interviews which were electronic recorded and transcribed verbatim. Their narrative was them thematically analysed using a well-established human science approach. The findings identified two main themes and a number of sub-themes. The first theme: being prepared, included the subthemes of adequate clinical experience, appropriate level of training and enough resources. The second theme: expansive roles included the subthemes of minimal clinical care, emotional supporter, incident commander and administrator.

This research has provided valuable insight into the personal preparedness and nursing roles during the Black Saturday and Victorian bushfires of 2009. It has demonstrated that nurses are adaptable to their clinical environment and community needs, in a nursing role is that expansive beyond that of traditional images of nurses providing care in disasters.

Lenson S*, Ranse J. (2011). Exploring the role of nurses during the ‘Black Saturday’ and Victorian bushfires of 2009 in Australia; paper presented at the 9th International Conference for Emergency Nurses, Adelaide, South Australia, 29th September.

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Role of intensive care and emergency nurses in disasters

I presented to a group of students undertaking postgraduate studies in Critical Care Nursing at the University of Canberra. My presentation focused on both the in-hospital and out-of-hospital role of intensive care and emergency nurses, in disasters. The presentation emphasised that in-hospital, nurses will and should continue to practice in their normal roles. Additionally, in the out-of-hospital environment, nurses are more likely to undertake a primary health, emotional supporter and problem-solver role, than undertaking a trauma / surgical role.

This presentation also covered topics such as; willingness to assist during a disaster, education for nurses in disaster health and other topics of consideration for emergency and intensive care nurses.

Ranse J. (2011). Role of intensive care and emergency nurses in disasters; presented to students of the University of Canberra – Postgraduate Critical Care Nursing, Canberra, ACT, 30th August.

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Pandemics and Environmental Emergencies

This chapter has a primary focus on environmental emergencies, such as heat-related emergencies, cold-related emergencies, drowning, and atmospheric-pressure-related emergencies. Each section within this chapter provides a good overview of anatomy, physiology, patient assessment and interventions, with an emphasis on both the pre-hospital and in-hospital care of the patient.

My contribution to this chapter was particularly in the areas of
•  Pandemics, and
•  Mass gathering health

The pandemic section highlights the historical background to pandemics. However, much of this section focuses on the challenges for health professionals, drawing on recent literature and examples from H1N1 2009 influenza.

Mass gathering health presents unique challenges for the health system and health professionals. This section of the chapter highlights these challenges. Additionally, this section outlines the characteristics of mass gatherings that influence the demand for health services (such as temperature, crowd mood, venue type). In particular, this section outlines the public health considerations for mass gatherings.


Mateer J, Cusack L, Ranse J. (2011) Chapter 28: Pandemics and Environmental Emergencies in Curtis K, Ramsden C, Lord B (eds). Emergency and Trauma Care: for nurses and paramedics. Elsevier Australia. Pp:673-694.

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Issues in Disasters for Health Professionals

I was invited to deliver a presentation to the Princess Alexandra Hospital, Disaster Response Service in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. This presentation outlines various issues for health professionals – particularly nurses and midwives – in disaster health. The presentation included discussions relating to:

• Willingness
• Ability
• Resources
• Role
• Volunteering

However, the focus of the presentation was on disaster education for health professionals. Highlighting the mismatch between what is taught, educated and trained versus what happens in the realities in disaster health.

Video Part 1:
This part of the presentation provides an overview of my background. Additionally, it introduces the presentation and covers the following topics:
- Definition of disasters
- Overview of Australian disasters
- Overview of disasters Australia has been involved with within the region
- Willingness of nurses to assist in disasters
- Ability of nurses to assist in disasters

Video Part 2:
This part of the presentation focuses on education. It provides an overview of a number of studies relating to education for Australian nurses. In particular, this part of the presentation provides an overview of education in:
- Undergraduate programs
- In-service type programs
- Postgraduate tertiary programs
- Other programs (such as MIMMS)
- Competencies for nurses and midwives
- Educational preparedness
Additionally, this part of the presentation outlines aspects of disaster resources for nurses.

Video Part 3:
This part of the presentation focuses on:
- The role of nurses during disasters
- Employer entitlements
- Volunteering
- Who to deploy with (and who not to deploy with)

Video Part 4:
This clip is after the completion of the presentation. Participants were encouraged to generate discussion regarding the presentation content. Some discussion included:
- Social media for health professionals
- Specialties in disaster response and recovery (such as midwifery and renal specialties)
- More discussion about roles and responsibilities (who is going to set-up your decontamination shower?)


Ranse J. (2011). Issues in disasters for health professionals; Guest speaker for the Princess Alexandra Hospital, Disaster Response Service, Brisbane, Queensland, 10th August.

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Disasters happen: Practice implications and issues

I was invited by the Chief Nurse and Midwifery Officer for Queensland Health to present as a Key Note Speaker at the 4th Passionate about Practice Conference. My presentation outlined some of the practice implications and issues for nurses and midwives during disaster response and recovery. The following provides an overview of the presentation (not word-for-word).

Slide 2: disasters happen
So you’re a health professional, and we know disasters happen. Would you be happy to assist? The vast majority (more than 90%) of the 600 conference delegates raised their hand to indicate that they would assist. Prior to assisting, there might be some questions you would want to ask yourself. These questions might include:

• What is a disaster?
• Am I really willing to participate?
• Am I able to participate?
• What education have I received?
• Am I well resourced?
• What would my role be?
• What other things do I need to think about?

Slide 3: what is a disaster?
My presentation illustrated the different between:

• Hazards
• Risks
• Events
• Impact
• Damage
• Disasters

I outlined the difference between disaster health issues (disasters that effect health, health infrastructure and health workforces), in comparison to disasters effecting social determinants of health (damage to transport infrastructure, water supplies or shelter).

Slide 4: what is a disaster?
I outlined some disasters that have occurred in Australia, requiring a health response.

Slide 5: what is a disaster?
Additionally, I outlined the various commonwealth health responses, in which the National Incident Room has been activated.

Slide 6: Are you willing to participate?
So you know what a disaster is, and we have discussed some examples of disasters. Are you willing to assist? Once again, the vast majority (more than 95%) of the 600 conference delegates raised their hand to indicate that they would assist.

You would probably get a similar reaction from your staff in your ward / department. Why? Because nurses want to assist and help others. Following the Pacific tsunami in 2009; this was the case in my emergency department. Most nurses; newly registered and senior nurses, and administrative staff said yes, they wanted to assist! Are these nurses and staff naively willing? Do they really understand what it means to participate in the health response to a disaster?

I outlined a research project of emergency nurses, in which they discussed the things that effect willingness (this slide illustrates the themes and subthemes effecting willingness, such as family, work culture, known versus unknown biological agents, etc...).

Asking the conference delegates again – would they be willing to assist in a disaster, the majority (more than 90%) indicated they would not.

Slide 7: are you able?
So, you might be willing, but are you able? Ability may be influenced by various factors, such as:

• Ability to get to work - in terms of transport (car washed away)
• You might have transport, but no transport infrastructure (road cut-off by water)
• You might have transport infrastructure, but it might be congested
• You might want to defend your own home

Slide 8: What education have you received?
When asked if the conference delegates had received some education or training in disaster health, about half indicated they had.

My presentation outlined the disaster education provided in undergraduate programs – according to a recent survey of Australian Universities by Usher and Mayner (2011), very little occurs. I suggested that this leaves clinical institutions with the responsibility to train and educate staff about their role in disaster health.

Of the conference delegates who had received some disaster education or training, the majority indicated that they had received this during in-service type sessions. However, we know (at least anecdotally) that in-service education topics are concerned with the day to day business of the ward / department (eg: managing their daily patient population) or new technologies / equipment in the workplace. Additionally, it is sometimes difficult to get everyone (or sometimes anyone) to an in-service session.

Perhaps disaster health education for nurses and midwives should be offered at a tertiary postgraduate level. It does at some universities embedded within public health or emergency health courses (Monash, Queensland University of Technology, and James Cook University); however, these programs are commonly multidisciplinary and non nursing specific. Assuming disaster health is embedded in nursing specialty tertiary postgraduate programs, perhaps it is offered in emergency nurses programs? In a recent survey of Australian tertiary postgraduate emergency nursing programs, this was found to be true, with 7/10 programs discussing disaster health. However, across the programs, the type and duration of education differs. Is there a need for consensus in disaster health education? Or the implementation of a proposed national framework as suggested by some (FitzGerald, et al., 2010)?

We know that some nurses receive education via ICS and MIMMS type programs. However, these and other programs don’t necessarily replicate the realities of disaster work. For example, some programs focus on mock CBR, random multiple casualty incidents or terrorist related disasters, whereas, the reality is that Australian nurses assist in bushfires and extreme weather events.

Slide 9: Are you well resourced?
I outlined the need to be well resourced, self-sufficient and self-sustaining during disaster response and recovery. However, this can be influenced by:

• Delayed versus non-delayed disasters: the given time to plan and organise resources prior to impact of an event
• We know that disasters happen out of hours: both Canberra and Black Saturday bushfires occurred on a Saturday. Out of hours, health services have less human resources, and commonly newly registered nurses are in leadership roles during this time
• In the initial response: nurses ‘pack the car’ full of trauma and resuscitation equipment, but use little, as they perform primary health roles
• Defence are best resourced, self-sustaining and self-sufficient in a humanitarian response

Slide 10: What would your role be?
I argued that there is a perception that disaster health is of high-level acute clinical care, primarily portrayed by the media. Following research relating to the Black Saturday and Victorian bushfires, the role of the nurse were identified as being:

• Clinical care: high amount of surgery in Haiti versus minimal acute clinical care in Australian fires and extreme weather events
• Emotional supporter
• Coordinator of care: similar to a hospital coordinator type role
• Problem solver

The picture of the koala illustrates that CFA personal do more than fight fires. Perhaps nurses do more than a clinical role? However, we are still in the early stages of understanding what nurses do.

Slide 11: What other things should you think about?
I outlined other things to think about, such as, if you volunteer to assist:

• Don’t become a disaster tourist – the Haiti experience is a good example of this
• Respond with a Government or registered NGO, ensure that you are invited into a foreign country, are self-sufficient and self-sustaining
• Consider your employer, what do they offer in terms of incentives, or support? What does your nursing and midwifery enterprising bargaining agreement include? Only 3/8 Australian nursing enterprising bargaining agreements mention nurses assisting in disasters. This is commonly ambiguous, relating to the nurses role volunteering with the RFS or SES, not necessarily in a disaster health capacity
• I spoke about ‘a list’ or ‘the list’ to register to assist in a disaster. These vary from state-to-state, health service-to-health service and hospital-to-hospital. They are somewhat haphazard and vary
• Response versus recovery: response is media attractive, however, recovery continues for months or years. Save your energy and volunteer to participate in the recovery period

If you want to donation to a disaster, give money as this gives back to the local economy, and saves volunteer time in sorting through donated items of clothing and bedding, which is commonly not used by displaced persons.

Ranse J. (2011). Disasters happen: Practice implications and issues; Key Note Speaker for the 4th Passionate about Practice Conference, Brisbane, Queensland, 8th August.

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MEDIA RELEASE: Are you health prepared for a disaster?

I undertook a media training program through my employment at the University of Canberra. At the conclusion of this training program, I prepared a ‘mock’ media release and participated in a ‘mock’ interview.

MEDIA RELEASE: Are you health prepared for a disaster?

Whilst people often give thought to the sentimental items they would quickly collect if they were evacuated from their homes, such as photo albums and computers, they often neglect to think of the items that support their health needs.

Jamie Ranse, Assistant Professor at the University of Canberra says "people should give consideration, and be prepared to take items such as; a list of their previous medical and surgical history, a number of days worth of medications, and an accurate list of their current medications.”

In Australia, following the 2011 Queensland floods, 2009 Victorian and 2003 Canberra bushfires, people were relocated to evacuation centers where they remained displaced for a number of days or weeks. Whilst in these centers a proportion of the displaced persons will require medications of some kind. During a disaster, medications become increasingly hard to access, and this is made even harder if people don't accurately know what medications they take.

Jamie Ranse also says "people should have a basic understanding of first aid principles, and have a small first aid kit in an accessible location, possibly the car”

It is of importance that people have a basic understanding of first aid principles. During disasters, emergency services are stretched beyond capacity, and they will not be able to respond in a timely manner to minor injuries or ailments. Similarly, in some cases emergency services may not be able to respond at all, as disaster events can make your location inaccessible, due to fire, flood or damaged road and other infrastructure.

Jamie Ranse says "it is important that communities and people within these communities are as self-sufficient as possible, as you cannot rely on emergency services to be operating as normal during disasters. Being 'health prepared' will ensure that you are as self-sufficient as possible and assist health professionals provide timely assistance to the community"

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Role, resources, and clinical and educational backgrounds of nurses who participated in the prehospital response to the 2009 bushfires in Victoria, Australia

This presentation provided an overview of research relating to the role of nurses in the pre-hospital setting of the 2009 Victorian bushfires. It highlighted that nurses undertake roles beyond that of a purely clinical nature, including: emotional support, coordination of care and problem solving. Additionally, this presentation illustrated the varied amount and type of resources taken to the disaster environment, and the usefulness of these resources.

Ranse J, Lenson S. (2011). Role, response and clinical and educational backgrounds of nurses who participated in the pre-hospital response to the 2009 Bushfires in Victoria, Australia; paper presented at the 17th World Congress on Disaster and Emergency Medicine, Beijing, China, 1st June.

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Disaster content varies in Australian postgraduate tertiary emergency nursing courses: Implications for educational preparedness

This presentation outlined the findings of a research project that explored the type and amount of disaster content in postgraduate emergency nursing programs in Australia. In 2009, twelve Australian universities offered programs specific to emergency nursing. Of these, ten participated in this project.

The type and amount of disaster content varied between all Australian postgraduate emergency nursing programs. Some programs did not discuss disasters at all, whilst had discussions regarding disasters embedded within other course content. A number included disaster content as a stand-alone topic.

Commonly, content relating to disasters was delivered by the program convenor or an expert clinician. The type of delivery varied from didactic to workshop style presentations. This presentation outlined the need for consensus and consistency in the delivery of postgraduate studies, using disasters as the context to this discussion.


Ranse J, Arbon P, Shaban R, Considine J, Mitchell B, Lenson S. (2011). Disaster content varies in Australian postgraduate emergency nursing courses: Implications for educational preparedness; paper presented at the 17th World Congress on Disaster and Emergency Medicine, Beijing, China, 31st May.

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Understanding the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a health care disaster

This poster was presented at the 17th World Congress on Disaster and Emergency Medicine, in Beijing, China. This research project aimed to explore the willingness of emergency nurses to work in a disaster. This study used a mixed-methods approach to data collection and analysis. Firstly, a national survey was undertaken, circulated via the College of Emergency Nursing Australasia, the Australian College of Emergency Nursing and in four partner hospitals in Australia. Secondly, a number of focus groups were undertaken at the partner hospitals. Finally, individual interviews were conducted with participants who had previously participated in a focus group session.

This poster highlights some of the preliminary findings from this project.


Arbon P, Cusack L, Ranse J, Shaban R, Considine J, Mitchell B, Hammond K, Kako M, Bahnisch L. (2011). Understanding the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a health care disaster; poster presented at the 17th World Congress on Disaster and Emergency Medicine, Beijing, China, 31st May – 3rd June.

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Data collection: Quantitative research

This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of quantitative data collection methods. The chapter includes tables, graphs and illustrations to demonstrate the key concepts. In this chapter, I contributed to the discussion relating to the use of technology to collect quantitative data. In particular this related to the pros and cons of using internet based surveys, and the use of PDAs to collect fieldwork type information.

Taylor J, Ranse J. (2011). Chapter 10: Data Collection: Quantitative Research in Jirojwong S, Johnson M, Welch A (eds). Reseach Methods in Nursing and Midwifery: Pathways to Evidence-Based Practice. Oxford University Press.

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How Can I Help? Improving Midwifery Responses to International Disasters: Panelist

I was a panelist on a discussion regarding the Midwifery response to disasters. The discussion covered various aspects, such as personal experiences, organisational participation and social media integration. I discussed what we already know about the Nursing response to disasters, and made inferences to where Midwifery is at in terms of this knowledge. In particular, I focused on the role, education and willingness of Nurses and Midwives.

The conference: International Day of the Midwife "The world needs midwives today, more than ever" was a free online conference as part of the International Day of the Midwife 2011. The session titled How Can I Help? Improving Midwifery Responses to International Disasters was lead by Sarah Stewart.

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The lived experience of Australian nurses working in disaster environments – my PhD proposal

This is my first PhD progress presentation. It outlines what we currently know about Australian nurses in the context of out-of-hospital disaster work. Additionally, it outlines my (current) proposed PhD plan. This presentation was delivered at the University of Canberra, Disciplines of Nursing and Midwifery Research Residential School, 31 March 2011

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Battered Christchurch faces water, health problems

This newspaper article focuses on the health impact for the community following the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. I was interviewed by Lucy Rickard, reporter from WA Today, a FairFax company. In this interview I discuss the potential differences in injury and illness patterns in comparison to other recent disasters in the region -2011 Queensland floods and 2009 Victorian bushfires. Additionally, I outline the potential mental health issues following disasters, such as post-traumatic growth and post-traumatic stress.

Note: for some reason, this article can not be viewed in IE. However, it works in FireFox.

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2011 Floods: Radio interview on ABC overnights

Following the devastating Queensland and Victorian floods in early 2011, I undertook a radio interview on the ABC overnights program. This interview focused on the preparedness of the community, specifically in relation to health needs. I discussed the need for people to be ‘health prepared’ and to ensure strategies are in place for individuals, families and communities to care for themselves during a disaster or emergency situation. I highlighted the need for people to have a basic understanding of first aid, a stocked first aid kit, and in particular, for individuals to have an accurate list of medications and previous medical history accessible.

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