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Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Climate Change".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2022) | Viewed by 47488

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Prof. Dr. Mariusz Goniewicz

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Department of Emergency Medicine, Medical University of Lublin, 20-059 Lublin, Poland
Interests: emergency medicine; disaster medicine; military medicine; surgery

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In a globalized world in which crisis incidents are becoming more frequent, more devastating and have a significant impact on the health and lives of societies, the quality of healthcare services, including disaster preparedness in particular, is crucial for health security. Increased risk of a mass accident or catastrophe taking place necessitates the organization of remedial measures intended to protect against these types of unusual events, and to facilitate the preparation required to mitigate their impact. A well-established preparedness program is a prerequisite for the effective response of healthcare systems to emergencies.

While we have made progress in preparedness and emergency response in the last decades, much more needs to be done.

Research priorities in preparedness and emergency response include: developing and evaluating systems of public health services and disaster management; developing and evaluating strategies to train the healthcare workers to meet the responsibilities for detection, mitigation, and recovery in varied settings and populations; improving the identification of health vulnerabilities and evaluation interventions to lessen the risk of poor health outcomes; evaluation characteristics of effective risk communication in disaster and emergency settings; scenario modeling and forecasting; information and management tools to improve the availability and usefulness during crisis decision-making.

This Special Issue seeks research papers on new approaches that have been applied or are under development to improve preparedness and emergency response. We especially encourage the submission of inter-disciplinary and crosscutting research. We also encourage the submission of manuscripts that are focused on various types of disasters, disaster and emergency research, and on policy or management solutions at multiple scales.

Dr. Mariusz Goniewicz
Guest Editor

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Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

disasters
emergency
public health
readiness
response

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Published Papers (11 papers)

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19 pages, 3090 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Generating High-Granularity COVID-19 Territorial Early Alerts Using Emergency Medical Services and Machine Learning

by Lorenzo Gianquintieri, Maria Antonia Brovelli, Andrea Pagliosa, Gabriele Dassi, Piero Maria Brambilla, Rodolfo Bonora, Giuseppe Maria Sechi and Enrico Gianluca Caiani

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(15), 9012; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19159012 - 25 Jul 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1811

Abstract

The pandemic of COVID-19 has posed unprecedented threats to healthcare systems worldwide. Great efforts were spent to fight the emergency, with the widespread use of cutting-edge technologies, especially big data analytics and AI. In this context, the present study proposes a novel combination of geographical filtering and machine learning (ML) for the development and optimization of a COVID-19 early alert system based on Emergency Medical Services (EMS) data, for the anticipated identification of outbreaks with very high granularity, up to single municipalities. The model, implemented for the region of Lombardy, Italy, showed robust performance, with an overall 80% accuracy in identifying the active spread of the disease. The further post-processing of the output was implemented to classify the territory into five risk classes, resulting in effectively anticipating the demand for interventions by EMS. This model shows state-of-art potentiality for future applications in the early detection of the burden of the impact of COVID-19, or other similar epidemics, on the healthcare system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

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12 pages, 334 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Objective and Subjective Stress Parameters in Response to High and Low-Fidelity Simulation Activities

by Marta Czekirda, Patrycja Misztal-Okońska, Anna Włoszczak-Szubzda, Mariusz Goniewicz, Mateusz Cybulski, Krystyna Kowalczuk, Noemi Jaszyna, Maria Pyć, Mariusz Gnat, Joanna Girzelska, Ewa Guz, Mariusz Sutryk, Wioletta Tuszyńska-Bogucka, Krzysztof Goniewicz, Ahmed M. Al-Wathinani and Amir Khorram-Manesh

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(5), 2980; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19052980 - 3 Mar 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2471

Abstract

Nursing graduates are required to have both excellent theoretical and practical skills that should be used during stressful emergency interventions. Since the received knowledge should be practiced to gain skills and trained to achieve competences, simulation exercises can be beneficial to even reduce the stress that each individual may face during emergency management of patients. A total of 146 first-year nursing students participated in the study, including 124 women and 22 men aged between 19 and 50 years, with a mean age of 32 years. The objective method estimated psychophysiological parameters (serum cortisol). Objective and subjective methods were used. The subjective method assessed stress experienced by students based on the standardized Stress Appraisal Questionnaire Version B for dispositional assessment. The study was conducted in the Monoprofile Medical Simulation Centre at the University of Economics and Innovation in Lublin, Poland and was approved by the University Research Ethics Committee. Both participants under and over 25 years of age showed increased levels of stress after low and high-fidelity simulations, with statistically significantly higher stress levels found for the low fidelity method. Low-fidelity simulation methods generated a greater increase in cortisol levels, indicating a higher stress level than the high-fidelity methods. The analysis of the scores obtained in the Stress Appraisal Questionnaire (KOS-B) showed that higher cortisol levels after the low-fidelity simulation reduced the subjective perception of a threat, while higher cortisol levels before the high-fidelity simulation promoted higher intellectual activity among the students. Levels of stress in the education of nursing students using low and high-fidelity methods can limit the sense of threat and activate professional task performance. The use of low and high-fidelity simulation does not generate destructive stress levels. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

18 pages, 397 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Citizens’ Preparedness to Deal with Emergencies as an Important Component of Civil Protection

by Jozef Kubás, Katarína Bugánová, Mária Polorecká, Katarína Petrlová and Adéla Stolínová

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(2), 830; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19020830 - 12 Jan 2022

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2691

Abstract

The main purpose of this paper is to point out a new approach in evaluating the preparedness of the population of a selected city for civil protection and its response to emergencies. Using new approaches, it evaluates a subjective questionnaire survey in combination with the objective state thanks to a mathematical approach and its subsequent verification on a specific example. The proposed approaches are then verified by experimental surveys in the selected city. The result is a highly adaptable tool that can be set up and adapted to different situations and different types of questionnaires to address the preparedness and safety of the population for emergencies. Thanks to this tool, it is possible to evaluate the subjective opinions of the population and thus gain insight into the assessment of the city’s preparedness for emergencies. Subsequently, we can set the prevention and preparedness of the population in the city on the basis of the obtained outputs, which potentially has a fundamental influence on the response after the occurrence of an emergency. Improving preparedness in the area of civil protection shall not only be reflected in the response and minimization of the consequences of the emergency, but also in the emotional security of the population. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

16 pages, 1744 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Potential of Community Volunteers in Flood Early Warning Dissemination: A Case Study of Bangladesh

by Murtuza Al-Mueed, Md Rafique Ahasan Chawdhery, Emmanuel Harera, Riyadh A. Alhazmi, Abdulmajeed M. Mobrad, Saqer M. Althunayyan and Ahmed M. Al-Wathinani

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(24), 13010; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182413010 - 9 Dec 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3175

Abstract

Flood early warning (FEW) is a vital component of disaster risk management and is particularly important for saving lives, developing a sustainable agro-based economy, economic stability, and the overall development of the people of Bangladesh as well as others. This study was conducted in a northern, flood-prone area of Bangladesh to investigate the potential of incorporating volunteers of the community to the Union Councils (UCs) to disseminate FEW alongside the top-down approach. Several studies have found that despite having a sophisticated flood forecasting technology, local communities are not reaping the benefits of it, as the existing dissemination system is inaccessible to most local people. Since risk communication takes place in a social context, this study investigated and thereby proposed that volunteerism, as a form of social capital or communal virtue, can potentially assist the community-based disaster management (CBDM) institutions in enhancing their capacity to reach the maximum population at times of flood risk. Therefore, it was confirmed that the trained volunteers need to be integrated into and endorsed by the national policy. In addition, this study also provides a number of recommendations connecting literature with policy documents of Bangladesh. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

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14 pages, 1775 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Conceptual Design of Smart Management System for Flooding Disaster

by Thaer Ibrahim and Alok Mishra

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(16), 8632; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18168632 - 16 Aug 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 6525

Abstract

Disasters pose a real threat to the lives and property of citizens; therefore, it is necessary to reduce their impact to the minimum possible. In order to achieve this goal, a framework for enhancing the current disaster management system was proposed, called the smart disaster management system. The smart aspect of this system is due to the application of the principles of information and communication technology, especially the Internet of Things. All participants and activities of the proposed system were clarified by preparing a conceptual design by using The Unified Modeling Language diagrams. This effort was made to overcome the lack of citizens’ readiness towards the use of information and communication technology as well as increase their readiness towards disasters. This study aims to develop conceptual design that can facilitate in development of smart management system for flooding disaster. This will assist in the design process of the Internet of Things systems in this regard. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

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11 pages, 338 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Feasibility of Implementing the Flexible Surge Capacity Concept in Bangkok: Willing Participants and Educational Gaps

by Phatthranit Phattharapornjaroen, Viktor Glantz, Eric Carlström, Lina Dahlén Holmqvist, Yuwares Sittichanbuncha and Amir Khorram-Manesh

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(15), 7793; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18157793 - 22 Jul 2021

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2256

Abstract

The management of emergencies consists of a chain of actions with the support of staff, stuff, structure, and system, i.e., surge capacity. However, whenever the needs exceed the present resources, there should be flexibility in the system to employ other resources within communities, i.e., flexible surge capacity (FSC). This study aimed to investigate the possibility of creating alternative care facilities (ACFs) to relieve hospitals in Bangkok, Thailand. Using a Swedish questionnaire, quantitative data were compiled from facilities of interest and were completed with qualitative data obtained from interviews with key informants. Increasing interest to take part in a FSC system was identified among those interviewed. All medical facilities indicated an interest in offering minor treatments, while a select few expressed interest in offering psychosocial support or patient stabilization before transport to major hospitals and minor operations. The non-medical facilities interviewed proposed to serve food and provide spaces for the housing of victims. The lack of knowledge and scarcity of medical instruments and materials were some of the barriers to implementing the FSC response system. Despite some shortcomings, FSC seems to be applicable in Thailand. There is a need for educational initiatives, as well as a financial contingency to grant the sustainability of FSC. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

21 pages, 1788 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Implementing Public Health Strategies—The Need for Educational Initiatives: A Systematic Review

by Amir Khorram-Manesh, Maxim A. Dulebenets and Krzysztof Goniewicz

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(11), 5888; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18115888 - 30 May 2021

Cited by 51 | Viewed by 6090

Abstract

In the absence of a specific treatment or vaccines, public health strategies are the main measures to use in the initial stages of a pandemic to allow surveillance of infectious diseases. During the ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), several countries initiated various public health strategies, such as contact tracing and quarantine. The present study aims to conduct a systematic literature review to identify the presence of educational initiatives that promote the implementation of public health strategies before public health emergencies, with a special focus on contact tracing applications. Using Science Direct, PubMed, Scopus, and Gothenburg University search engines, all published scientific articles were included, while conference, reports, and non-scientific papers were excluded. The outcomes of the reviewed studies indicate that the effective implementation of public health strategies depends on the peoples’ willingness to participate and collaborate with local authorities. Several factors may influence such willingness, of which ethical, psychological, and practical factors seem to be the most important and frequently discussed. Moreover, individual willingness and readiness of a community may also vary based on the acquired level of knowledge about the incident and its cause and available management options. Educational initiatives, proper communication, and timely information at the community level were found to be the necessary steps to counteract misinformation and to promote a successful implementation of public health strategies and attenuate the effects of a pandemic. The systematic review conducted as a part of this study would benefit the relevant stakeholders and policy makers and assist with effective designing and implementation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

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15 pages, 1776 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Importance of Immediate Electronic-Based Feedback to Enhance Feedback for First-Time CPR Trainees

by Patrycja Misztal-Okońska, Krzysztof Goniewicz, Mariusz Goniewicz, Jamie Ranse, Attila J. Hertelendy, Lesley Gray, Eric Carlström, Jarle Løwe Sørensen and Amir Khorram-Manesh

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(8), 3885; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18083885 - 7 Apr 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3624

Abstract

Sudden cardiac arrest is one of the leading causes of death globally. The recommended clinical management in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases is the immediate initiation of high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Training mannequins should be combined with technology that provides students with detailed immediate feedback on the quality of CPR performance. This study aimed to verify the impacts of the type of feedback (basic or detailed) the responders receive from the device while learning CPR and how it influences the quality of their performance and the motivation to improve their skills. The study was conducted at the Medical University of Lublin among 694 multi-professional health students during first aid classes on basic life support (BLS). The students first practiced on an adult mannequin with a basic control panel; afterward, the same mannequin was connected to a laptop, ensuring a detailed record of the performed activities through a projector. Next, the participants expressed their subjective opinion on how the feedback provided during the classes, basic vs. detailed, motivated them to improve the quality of their CPR performance. Additionally, during the classes, the instructor conducted an extended observation of students’ work and behavior. In the students’ opinion, the CPR training with detailed feedback devices provided motivation for learning and improving CPR proficiency than that with a basic control panel. Furthermore, the comments given from devices seemed to be more acceptable to the students, who did not see any bias in the device’s evaluation compared to that of the instructor. Detailed device feedback motivates student health practitioners to learn and improve the overall quality of CPR. The use of mannequins that provide detailed feedback during BLS courses can improve survival in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

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21 pages, 372 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Cross-Sectional Study on the Flood Emergency Preparedness among Healthcare Providers in Saudi Arabia

by Ahmed M. Al-Wathinani, Abdulaziz Alakeel, Ahmad Hecham Alani, Mohammad Alharbi, Abdullah Almutairi, Tahani Alonaizi, Riyadh A. Alhazmi, Sultan M. Alghadeer, Abdulmajeed M. Mobrad, Krzysztof Goniewicz, Amir Khorram-Manesh and Attila J. Hertelendy

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(3), 1329; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031329 - 2 Feb 2021

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 7746

Abstract

This study used a descriptive cross-sectional methodology to measure healthcare workers’ knowledge, attitudes, perceptions, and willingness to respond to a flood scenario in Saudi Arabia. A validated survey was distributed to collect data using a convenience sampling technique through multiple social media platforms. A total of 227 participants were included in this study: 52% of them were aged between 26 to 34 years, 74% were residents from Riyadh, and 52.4% worked in nursing divisions. A significant number of respondents (73.2%) had positive perceptions towards their hospitals’ ability to provide an effective response to a flood, 89% were willing to report to work following a flood, and 90% of participants reported the need to develop both guidelines and training for flood disaster preparedness. Preparation and successful flood mitigation in the hospital setting requires staff that have both knowledge and training in emergency management. One way to obtain such readiness is through competency-based training, including both table-top and full-scale live exercises. Although the willingness to respond to such a flooding emergency was high among staff, the development of guidelines and educational programs is needed in order to develop the competencies and skills sets to improve disaster preparedness response and preparedness efforts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

11 pages, 355 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road Users

by Dorota Lasota, Ahmed Al-Wathinani, Paweł Krajewski, Krzysztof Goniewicz and Witold Pawłowski

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(23), 8995; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17238995 - 2 Dec 2020

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5348

Abstract

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than half of all road fatalities involve vulnerable road users, i.e., pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists. Poland is classified as one of the European Union (EU) countries marked by low road safety, with a higher frequency of accidents involving pedestrians compared to other EU countries (31% of all fatalities). Among unprotected road users, a significant group of victims are pedestrians, who are often under the influence of alcohol. This study aims to analyze the impact of alcohol on the risk of occurrence and consequences of road accidents among pedestrians. The source of data was the medical documentation of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Medical University of Warsaw. In more than half of pedestrian deaths, the presence of alcohol was found; regardless of the place of the event and the place of death, among the victims under the influence of alcohol, males dominated; the average age of the victims under the influence of alcohol was significantly lower compared to the average age of sober victims, with younger victims being significantly more likely to die at the scene of the accident, especially in rural areas; significantly higher alcohol concentrations were found in males, in victims who died at the scene of the accident, and with victims of accidents in rural areas. Among pedestrian traffic accident fatalities, the most numerous group comprised young men under the influence of alcohol. In rural areas, a higher percentage of pedestrian victims died at the scene as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. These areas should be subject to intensive preventive measures to increase the safety of pedestrians as unprotected road users. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

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10 pages, 329 KiB

Open AccessCommentary

Public Health Regulations and Policies Dealing with Preparedness and Emergency Management: The Experience of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy

by Luna Aristei, Floriana D’Ambrosio, Leonardo Villani, Maria Francesca Rossi, Alessandra Daniele, Carlotta Amantea, Gianfranco Damiani, Patrizia Laurenti, Walter Ricciardi, Maria Rosaria Gualano and Umberto Moscato

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(3), 1091; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19031091 - 19 Jan 2022

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 3771

Abstract

Worldwide, the management of health emergencies requires a high degree of preparedness and resilience on the part of governments and health systems. Indeed, disasters are becoming increasingly common, with significant health, social, and economic impacts. Living in a globalized world also means that emergencies that occur in one country often have an international, in some cases global, spread: the COVID-19 pandemic is a cogent example. The key elements in emergency management are central governance, coordination, investment of resources before the emergency occurs, and preparedness to deal with it at all levels. However, several factors might condition the response to the emergency, highlighting, as for Italy, strengths and weaknesses. In this context, policies and regulation of actions to be implemented at international and national level must be up-to-date, clear, transparent and, above all, feasible and implementable. Likewise, the allocation of resources to develop adequate preparedness plans is critical. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the European Commission proposed the temporary recovery instrument NextGenerationEU, as well as a targeted reinforcement of the European Union’s long-term budget for the period 2021–2027. The pandemic highlighted that it is necessary to interrupt the continuous defunding of the health sector, allocating funds especially in prevention, training and information activities: indeed, a greater and more aware public attention on health risks and on the impacts of emergencies can help to promote virtuous changes, sharing contents and information that act as a guide for the population. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Disasters Preparedness and Emergency Response: Prevention, Surveillance and Mitigation Planning)

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