write a letter to the editor of the newspaper about the importance of nursing personnel during natural disaster
Answers
Answer:
Dear editor:
We read with much interest the published article "Knowledge and Attitude of 851 Nursing Personnel toward Depression in General Hospitals of Korea" by Park et al. (1). We wish to share our critical comments regarding the published article.
It was not clearly stated if the questionnaire used was in English or Korean language. If used in any language other than English, special mention has to be there regarding the back to back translation and the validation but such was not mentioned. No age group of the individuals recruited for the present study was mentioned. Age plays an important role in outcome of the study. An earlier research conducted on nurses found the depression to be more in the younger age group (2).
No mental trauma, family history, or significant mental history of the nurses was stated. This fact may have been important exclusion criteria for the present study. Interestingly, an earlier study conducted on youth found major shock and negative perception of oneself to be the important factors for depression (3).
It may be interesting to debate any items in the questionnaire which may not have been actually answered by the nurses. It is also interesting to ascertain if the results of the present study is related to the training programme of the nurses. An earlier research study observed the training part to be an important component to influence the nurses' involvement and attitudes towards mental health problems (4). Perhaps, with the results, we may aim at future training programmes.
The authors were very humble in highlighting the limitations of the study. Overall, an interesting article for which the authors and the editor need to be applauded.
Answer:
After a natural disaster like a hurricane strikes, the community often faces an unprecedented amount of structural damage. Such damage – like broken power lines – can make it difficult for general facilities like hospitals to remain open and meet the community’s needs. Already, an essential resource for most nurses is suddenly unavailable. Add to this the fact that nurses are given patient assignments in areas outside of their comfort zone, and a whole new array of questions crop up:
How does the nurse get to the site safely?
Is there an exposure risk to certain diseases?
Will there be security?
Does the nurse have family members who are affected by the disaster?
Are local laws forcing the nurse to work? If so, are these laws in the nurse’s best interest?
Complicated questions like these will be answered differently by individual registered nurses. While the medical community is still debating how to best approach complications, many agree the most important factor is setting clear policies that establish the expectations of the nurse, employer, and government.