Background With the rapid development of social economy in China, various public health emergencies frequently occur. Such emergencies cause a serious threat to human health and public safety, especially in rural China. Owing to flaws in emergency management mechanism and policy, the government is not capable to effectively deal with public health emergencies. Therefore, this study aimed to dis...

Iran's health system is expanding the disaster and emergency higher education programs over the country to enhance the capacity of human resources for effective and efficient disaster mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. In this article we present an overview about the initiatives and progress of disaster and emergency health higher education in Iran. Following the Bam earthquake, i...

Herein we summarize the public health actions taken to mitigate exposure of the public to radiation after the Fukushima accident that occurred on 11 March 2011 in order to record valuable lessons learned for disaster preparedness. Evacuations from the radiation-affected areas and control of the distribution of various food products contributed to the reduction of external and internal radiation...

Natural disaster mitigation is a collective effort of; forecast, assessment, and encouraging the public participation in disaster mitigation. This study focused on the rarely addressed aspect, “the value of public awareness” in natural disaster mitigation. The methodology used satellite data and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to produce semi-real-time “Media GIS” contents. When deliver th...

Disaster response and recovery efforts require timely interaction and coordination of public emergency services in order to save lives and property. Today, IT is used in this field only to a limited extent, but there is a tremendous potential for increasing efficiency and effectiveness in coping with a disaster. In this paper we sketch requirements and innovative technology for an integrated di...

Mass Gatherings and Public Health   Mass gatherings are highly visible events with the potential for serious health and political consequences if not managed carefully and effectively.1-4 Mass gatherings have been reported to have significant impact upon public health systems throughout the world.5-10 International mass gathering events, such as those associated with the Olympic Games, often ca...

BACKGROUND Disaster Medicine training is not included in medical education curriculum in China, even though the country has suffered various disasters annually. We intended to assess the need for continual education regarding disaster management for health professionals in China. METHODS A survey was conducted among 324 health professionals who participated in the response to the Wenchuan ear...

In 2000, former US President Bill Clinton asked the United States Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to implement Project Impact, a community-based mitigation initiative, in six Central American and Caribbean countries that were devastated by hurricanes Georges and Mitch. Project Impact had been used for a number of years in the United States to help communities prepare for natural disa...

BACKGROUND In recent years, the term 'resilience' has gained increasing currency in discussions of emergency preparedness. This review identifies key concepts and explores the relevance of resilience for disaster planning and public health protection. METHODS A systematic review of literature on concepts of resilience, with a narrative summary of key relevant concepts for public health. RES...