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To work or not to work: An analysis of the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster
Abstracts in a paediatric emergency department can be overwhelming. At a basic level, recognition of a sick child underpins the care of children who present to emergency departments. Often a registered nurse may commence work in the emergency department having never really been exposed to such sick undiagnosed children. Improving the safe working knowledge and skills of nursing staff in this domain has been a goal at Sydney Children’s Hospital (SCH) ED for many years. The provision of regular, less formal education opportunities has occurred for a number of years in the department. However, it was recognised that a more formal structured approach was needed to help facilitate acquisition of the basic knowledge and skills required by nursing staff to care for children in the ED. A module type structure with an element of recognition of prior learning allows us to tailor the programme to the learning needs of the RN. This paper will discuss the development of a Paediatric Emergency Nursing Support Transition Program at SCH. The program has been designed to fit the requirements of a CAP program which will enable participants to work towards a post graduate qualification in addition to acquiring the basic skills necessary to work in a Paediatric Emergency department. doi:10.1016/j.aenj.2011.09.076 To work or not to work: An analysis of the willingness of Australian emergency nurses to respond to a disaster Paul Arbon 1,∗ , Lynette Cusack 1 , Jamie Ranse 1,2 , Ramon Shaban 3,5 , Julie Considine 4 , Belinda Mitchell 4 , Karen Hammad 1 , Laura Bahnisch 1 , Mayumi Kako 1 , Richard 1 Woodman 1
Flinders University, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia 2 Faculty of Health, University of Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia 3 Griffith Institute for Health and Medical Research, Griffith University, Meadowbrook, Qld 4131, Australia 4 Deakin University — Northern Health Partnership, Emergency Department, The Northern Hospital, 185 Cooper St., Epping, Vic 3076, Australia 5 Department of Emergency Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Qld, Australia Keywords: Disaster planning; Disaster preparedness; Willingness; Emergency nurses; Disaster training; Nursing education; Risk perceptions E-mail addresses: paul.arbon@flinders.edu.au (P. Arbon), lynette.cusack@fllinders.edu.au (L. Cusack), [email protected] (J. Ranse), r.shaban@griffith.edu.au (R. Shaban), [email protected] (J. Considine), [email protected] (B. Mitchell), karen.hammad@flinders.edu.au (K. Hammad), laura.bahnisch@flinders.edu.au (L. Bahnisch), mayumi.kako@flinders.edu.au (M. Kako), richard.woodman@flinders.edu.au (R. Woodman). The recent extreme weather events in Queensland and Victoria highlight that natural disasters occur regularly in
S31 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 mixedmethod 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-ofwork 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. doi:10.1016/j.aenj.2011.09.077 Domestic violence screening in Emergency Departments: What does it mean for women? Laura Bahnisch 1,∗ , Charmaine Power 1 , Judith Dwyer 1 , Janny Maddern 1 , Debbie McCarthy 2 , Jane Koziol-McLain 3 1
Flinders University, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia 2 Flinders Medical Centre, Bedford Park, SA 5042, Australia 3 Auckland University of Technology, 90 Akoranga Dve, Northcote, Auckland 062, New Zealand Keywords: Domestic violence; Screening programs; Women’s health; Emergency nurses; Nursing education E-mail addresses: laura.bahnisch@flinders.edu.au (L. Bahnisch), charmaine.power@flinders.edu.au (C. Power), judith.dwyer@flinders.edu.au (J. Dwyer), janny.maddern@flinders.edu.au (J. Maddern), [email protected] (D. McCarthy), [email protected] (J. Koziol-McLain). This presentation reports on a study that explored the health and safety outcomes of women who participated in a domestic violence screening program in an emergency department (ED). Evidence linking domestic violence (DV) with long-term physical and mental health problems, particularly in women, has provided the impetus for the introduction of DV screening protocols in EDs. While screening for DV increases the rate of identification, there is little evidence of intervention effectiveness or harm. Whether or
Flinders University, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia 2 Faculty of Health, University of Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia 3 Griffith Institute for Health and Medical Research, Griffith University, Meadowbrook, Qld 4131, Australia 4 Deakin University — Northern Health Partnership, Emergency Department, The Northern Hospital, 185 Cooper St., Epping, Vic 3076, Australia 5 Department of Emergency Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Qld, Australia Keywords: Disaster planning; Disaster preparedness; Willingness; Emergency nurses; Disaster training; Nursing education; Risk perceptions E-mail addresses: paul.arbon@flinders.edu.au (P. Arbon), lynette.cusack@fllinders.edu.au (L. Cusack), [email protected] (J. Ranse), r.shaban@griffith.edu.au (R. Shaban), [email protected] (J. Considine), [email protected] (B. Mitchell), karen.hammad@flinders.edu.au (K. Hammad), laura.bahnisch@flinders.edu.au (L. Bahnisch), mayumi.kako@flinders.edu.au (M. Kako), richard.woodman@flinders.edu.au (R. Woodman). The recent extreme weather events in Queensland and Victoria highlight that natural disasters occur regularly in
S31 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 mixedmethod 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-ofwork 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. doi:10.1016/j.aenj.2011.09.077 Domestic violence screening in Emergency Departments: What does it mean for women? Laura Bahnisch 1,∗ , Charmaine Power 1 , Judith Dwyer 1 , Janny Maddern 1 , Debbie McCarthy 2 , Jane Koziol-McLain 3 1
Flinders University, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia 2 Flinders Medical Centre, Bedford Park, SA 5042, Australia 3 Auckland University of Technology, 90 Akoranga Dve, Northcote, Auckland 062, New Zealand Keywords: Domestic violence; Screening programs; Women’s health; Emergency nurses; Nursing education E-mail addresses: laura.bahnisch@flinders.edu.au (L. Bahnisch), charmaine.power@flinders.edu.au (C. Power), judith.dwyer@flinders.edu.au (J. Dwyer), janny.maddern@flinders.edu.au (J. Maddern), [email protected] (D. McCarthy), [email protected] (J. Koziol-McLain). This presentation reports on a study that explored the health and safety outcomes of women who participated in a domestic violence screening program in an emergency department (ED). Evidence linking domestic violence (DV) with long-term physical and mental health problems, particularly in women, has provided the impetus for the introduction of DV screening protocols in EDs. While screening for DV increases the rate of identification, there is little evidence of intervention effectiveness or harm. Whether or