OBJECTIVES During disasters, the public expects that emergency care will be available at a moment's notice. As such, an emergency medical services (EMS) workforce that is trained and prepared for disasters is imperative. The primary objectives of this study were to quantify the amount of individual-level training EMS professionals receive in terrorism and disaster-preparedness, as well as to as...

After-action reports detailing the preparation, response, and outcomes after large tornadoes are sparse in the medical literature. Thus, the retrospective report by Ablah and colleagues1 in this issue of Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, documenting the EF5 tornado that devastated Greensburg, KS, in May 2007, is a timely and important contribution to the growing disaster medicin...

INTRODUCTION The ongoing threat of a terrorist attack places public agencies under increasing pressure to ensure readiness in the event of a disaster. Yet, little published information exists regarding the current state of readiness, which would allow local and regional organizations to develop disaster preparedness plans that would function seamlessly across service areas. The objective of thi...

The objective of this study was to perform a systematic review of articles that cover aspects of disaster mental health preparedness. This assessment was done by a thorough review and summary of the available studies which provided a considerable background and amplified the gaps in knowledge about community mental health preparedness. By this systematic review, we tried to identify available c...

INTRODUCTION The coordination and integration of mental health agencies' plans into disaster responses is a critical step for ensuring effective response to all-hazard emergencies. PROBLEM In order to remedy the current lack of integration of mental health into emergency preparedness training, researchers must assess mental health emergency preparedness training needs. To date, no recognized ...

BACKGROUND Conventional disaster preparedness messaging focuses largely on promoting survival actions and communications planning for the immediate post-disaster period. While such preparedness is vital, we have long-observed a gap in preventive medicine and disaster planning for building personal resilience--preventatively--to persevere through prolonged recovery timeframes. There are many hel...

The Bandar Bushehr, Iran earthquake of April 9, 2013 gravely illustrates how disaster-prone areas of the world are compounding their risk of disaster and major public health emergencies when there is a geographical convergence of natural and technological hazards. Scientists must emphasize to policy makers that ever-increasing regional industrialization and the broader introduction of nuclear f...

CONTEXT Trust contributes to community resilience by the critical influence it has on the community's responses to public health recommendations before, during, and after disasters. However, trust in public health is a multifactorial concept that has rarely been defined and measured empirically in public health jurisdictional risk assessment surveys. Measuring trust helps public health departme...