Abstract
Background: The aim of this review was to explore the current literature about working as a nurse in the emergency department (ED) during a disaster. Nurses play an important role in caring for patients that present to the ED following a disaster. While there is a great deal of literature written about disasters and disaster response, little has been written from the emergency nursing perspective. Methods: Literature was identified through electronic databases from 2000 to 2011. Articles were reviewed if they provided discussion relevant to nursing in the ED during a disaster. Results: 18 articles met the criteria. Five themes emerged from the review. There were two key findings: changes from a 'normal' working day to a disaster; and the preparedness of nurses working in the ED during a disaster. Conclusions: The literature highlights concern about the preparedness of ED nurses for disaster response and the capacity of nurses to transition to working in a disaster situation.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 235-244 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Australasian Emergency Nursing Journal |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Nov 2012 |
Keywords
- " Disaster response"
- " Emergency department"
- " Emergency nurse"
- " Emergency nursing"
- Disaster
- Disasters
- Emergencies
- Nurses