Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

Share an overview of a natural or human-made disaster that has occurred in your area in the last 20 years.
- Include a URL and reference to the event. This may be a news article.
Describe how your community was impacted.
Describe lessons learned and changes made to preparedness Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

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Essay on Disaster Management Reflections

Example Essay on Disaster Management Reflections:
The earth has been affected by the natural hazards over a long time as man emerged into picture the picture that the natural occurrences were becoming disaster, together with being documented in various ways providing a warning for the future generation. However in 1920, there was a published study referred to as the catastrophe and social change by Henry Samuel Prince. This was the Halifax Disaster documented account and the occurrence of the social change. The first person to deliver evidence based study was Prince, by use of theory founding a paradigm which paved way for the management of disaster to be studied (Sperling, 2004).Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

A change in social can be caused by disasters. Social change always is not for better depending on affected population resources (Oliver, 2002). Change in disaster study started changing with theories like as Carr discussing a cultural protection collapse. Carr made a discussion on how we got the tools in place encountering the act of disasters though if there was lack of these tools there was no more protection.

Disaster is any occurrence that causes ecological disruption, damage, human life loss, health services and health deterioration on sufficient scale to warrant response extraordinary from the outside area or community affected (De Boer, 2000). In addition, it can be also defined as the series or event which disrupts the normal activities seriously. Disaster means a sudden or great misfortune. This may include tsunami; fires; floods; droughts; flood and many others.Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

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The major disasters naturally may include earthquake, cyclone, flood, and drought. Minor disasters naturally include storm, heat waves, cold wave, mud slides, and thunderstorm. The major disasters that may occur in man made activities include deforestation, fires, setting of fires, and pollution due to their prawn activities. Minor man made occurrence of disasters may include accidents on the roads or trains, riots, industrial riots, food poisoning, and environmental pollution.

In history throughout disasters had some impacts significantly on the number, life style and health status of the population such as death, shortage of food, movements of the population, damage of water systems and the health facilities, and severe injuries which requires treatment extensive. Health problem that is common to every disaster include mental health, social reactions, nutrition and food, climatic exposure, health infrastructure damage, and population displacement.

Whether a disaster is man- made or natural, it can occur at anytime and anywhere. General response to any disaster is thereby in terms of rescue and relief operations which are after the event. If we are well and adequately prepared, it is very easy to reduce the impact of that disaster. Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper There can be reduction of the impact through being aware by understanding well the preventive actions, together with having knowledge of particular tools and techniques; at the time of disaster event these tools and techniques can be used to control total damage to belongings and life. The biggest problem and very sad thing is the way a disaster occur; they occur with swiftness and suddenness hence, for a disaster serenity to be reduced, the response has to be swift equally(De Boer, 2000).

It is hard for a day to pass without news about complex or major emergency happening in different parts of the world, as disasters continue to strike causing destruction to both developed and undeveloped countries (Dyregrov, 1999). This raises vulnerability concern to occurrences that may affect gravely our daily lives and the future. In vulnerable populations, some emergency in particular those occurring in nature become catastrophic events only when they are in combination with the vulnerability factors like populations density and the human settlements.

An occurrence of earthquake in deserted area is might be considered as a natural hazard, rather than if it occurred in mega city where it is recognized as major disaster (Stewart, 2005). Any type of emergency that has anything to do with vulnerability population together with man made included, concerns some technological disasters like the ones of chemicals or nuclear; these demonstrates complex and major emergencies are linked closely to an anarchic growth population that leads to poverty, unplanned population settlements, and environmental degradation.

Disasters themselves have no limitation to specific parts of world. There are no countries that are disaster immune, but there is variance in disaster vulnerability (Sperling, 2005). However, some countries might be more prone to a particular type of disaster. The more advanced a country is, the level of their preparedness is slightly higher. High level of preparedness enhances them have good control over loss. Some disasters where loss during actual event is not required as high, hence losses become a bit high due to the inability in managing the situation in a timed manner.Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

Another thing that might lead to a big loss during certain disasters is the secure utilities and properly manages inability (Pearce, 2003). In one way these utilities tend to be very important, and on the other hand, due to ruptures or leakage, some of them might be in contact with each other, where they are not supposed to therefore leading to further damage. The most important thing and the most motivation of disaster management are minimizing losses at disaster time together with ensuring that resources are utilized effectively; as they are scarce already.

There are four types of disaster mainly. These include environmental emergencies, natural disasters, pandemic disasters, and complex disasters. Disaster prevention is activities that are designed for provision of permanent disasters protection. Not every disaster can be prevented and particularly natural disasters; the loss risk of injury and life can be only mitigated with plans of good evacuation, design standards and environmental planning.

Disaster preparedness is activities for life loss and damage minimization (Pearce, 2003). Preparedness is the best way of reducing disasters impact. Disaster relief is a multi-agency coordinated response of reducing disaster impact and its results of long-term. These activities may include relocation, rescue, water and food provision, preventing disability and disease, repair of vital services like transport, provision of temporary shelter and health care emergency.Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

Once the needs of emergency has been accomplished and the crisis is initially over, those affected together with the community supporting them remain vulnerable. Management of disaster is linked with the development sustainably, in particular with vulnerable people relation like the ones with disability, children, elderly people and groups marginalized.

Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response
Crystal Lusk
Walden University
Family, Community, and Population-Based Care
4011-12
March 19, 2014
Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response
A disaster is an event that is a natural or man-made occurrence that can disrupt or destroy the lives of those it affects (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2014). Management of a disaster includes four phases; prevention, preparedness, response and recovery (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2014). Hawaii’s isolation in the pacific lends itself to the possibility of many disasters from; floods, hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, pandemics, and volcano eruptions (Schaefers, 2014). Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

The best way for the PHN to be prepared for an emergency is to participate collaboratively with community resources including local hospitals, health care centers, and state disaster teams. Training on specialized teams such as; Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT), Medial Reserve Corps (MRC), and the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) provide opportunities for the nurse to prepare themselves for a disaster (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2014). Training for disaster preparedness increases the likelihood that friends, family and neighbors will be ready and resilient (“HMRC,” 2014).
In regards to flooding in Hawaii, nurses can educate the public in ways to avoid injury and death during a flood. Teaching the safest route to high ground, what emergency materials they should have on hand, and not to drive through a flooded area (“DEM: flash flood,” n.d.). The PHN uses clinical decision making skills during a disaster such as; knowing the disaster plans for their community, assisting in triage of injured, preventing further injury to volunteers trying to help, and collaborating with local agencies (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2014). Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

The increase in unpredictable natural disasters events for a decade has led to put the disaster preparedness as a central issue in disaster management. Disaster preparedness reduces the risk of loss lives and injuries and increases a capacity for coping when hazard occurs. Considering the value of the preparatory behavior, governments, local, national and international institutions and non-government organizations made some efforts in promoting disaster preparedness. However, although a number of resources have been expended in an effort to promote behavioural preparedness, a common finding in research on natural disaster is that people fail to take preparation for such disaster events (Paton, 2005; Shaw 2004; Spittal, et.al, 2005; Tierney, 1993; Kenny, 2009; Kapucu, 2008; Coppola and Maloney, 2009). For example, the fact that nearly 91% of Americans live in a moderate to high risk of natural disasters, only 16% take a preparation for natural disaster (Ripley, 2006). Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

This lack of preparation takes place in different places and involves different hazards. In the case of hurricane, only half of all respondents living in Central Florida have hurricane evacuation plan in place (Kapucu, 2008). Another finding revealed that only 8 percent of all respondent have prepared a disaster supplies kit in home. Kenny (2009) found that most residents in South Florida, hurricane-prone area, failed to take preparatory measures such as securing bottled water and food when storms strike. In another place and a different hazard, the result of study demonstrated the same finding. Paton and Prior (2008) studied bushfire preparation in Tasmania show that most respondents had undertaken some form of protective behavior only minimal and limited. They started to prepare after they were warned by disaster emergency services.

According to Nakagawa (2009) people are reluctant to take action by spending money and time because they perceived some disasters have low probability. Earthquake, for instance, due to difficult to predict, in many cases people tend to neglect preparing earthquake risk. In a survey in 1974, Kenny (2009) concluded that only 12 percent respondents in California households have taken action measure preventing earthquakes. However, Nakagawa (2009) also noted that although people living in frequently natural disaster such as floods and typhoons, they do not take a proper action. For example, only 10% people had evacuated to safer locations when the Tokage typhoon hit Japan, in Toyooka city.Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

Some argued that level of preparedness is most likely affected by direct experience of the disaster (Tierney, 1993).

Essay on Disaster Preparedness is for Everyone

Introduction Of the four phases of emergency management, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery, perhaps the place that individuals can make the biggest difference in their own state of resiliency and survival of a disaster is in the preparedness phase. Being prepared before a disaster strikes makes sense yet many people fail to take even simple, precautionary steps to reduce the consequences of destruction and mayhem produced by natural events such as earthquakes, volcanos and tornados (see Paton et al, 2001, Mileti and Peek, 2002; Tierney, 1993, Tierney et al, 2001). Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper Educating the public and getting them to take preparatory actions to better protect themselves in the face of natural hazards has led to extensive study of risk

The need for the project Mileti and Peek (2006) propose that hazard education corresponds with the objective of social marketing; it increases “the prevalence of a target behavior in a specific population” (Mileti and Peek, 2002, p. 125). Recognizing that the scope of disaster preparedness education must reach a very diverse population means the methods of delivering risk communication must also be broad and inclusive (Paton et al, 1999, as cited in Paton & Johnson, 2001, p. 272). Unfortunately, the over-dependence on social media and high-speed Internet connection has the potential to leave many people in this country without access to important disaster preparedness information. The Internet has increasing become the “go to” source for all types of information, about every subject imaginable, for large segments of the American population. Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper Yet a sizable percentage of people in this country still lack a home computer or an Internet connection. Data obtained from the 2009 Current Population Survey (CPS) by the U.S. Census Bureau revealed that 41.8% of Americans over the age of 55 have no Internet access at home. The CPS also revealed that Black and Hispanic households, 45.5% and 47.2% respectively, are less likely than Whites households (29.5%) to have Internet connectivity (CPS, 2009). Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper

Disaster Preparedness Essay Paper