Disaster in Franklin County
When disaster strikes, such as the tornado in Franklin County, then there must be a disaster action plan in place. There are several people involved in managing this disaster, but the outcome can be greatly improved if they all work together.
In this simulation, the public health personnel involve included the County Public Health Director, the Environmental Health Specialists, and the Community Health Nurses.
The role of the County Public Health director is to begin the departmental incident command system at the Public Health Department. This individual was also present for every briefing in order to communicate information about the needs of the people in the community. He was present at the firehouse immediately after the disaster struck.
The Environmental Health Specialists inspected the restaurants in the county to see if they were following the proper sanitation and preparation guidelines. They also inspected the shelter’s food safety, pet accommodations, and sanitary conditions. During the door-to-door interviews, the nurse found that there were unidentified chemicals in one man’s shed. In this situation, the Environmental Health Specialists were notified.
The public health nurse has the skills to deploy staff to shelters after a disaster and participates in restoring community services after such a disaster occurs. They also triage the people once disaster strikes, and provide immediate medical attention to those who need it. The PHN provides education on the prevention of secondary illnesses from the disaster, such as foodborne illness. They were also an important part of the multidisciplinary door-to -door interview team.
The public health nurse must use a chain of command in order to have effective communication between team members. She is part of the public health group, as described above. She communicates her findings with the medical director, who is the leader of the public health group. The medical health...