Risk Management In Hurricanes

For this discussion the natural disaster I chose is Hurricanes. Hurricanes are a house hold talking point anywhere in Miami-Dade County. We have gone through many historic hurricanes like Andrew, Wilma, and Katrina. These hurricanes left a wave of devastation in Miami that people remember to this day. Natural disasters like hurricanes are sudden weather events that affect numerous lives, and leaving a wake of destruction for people to recover from for months and years to come (Usher, Redman-MacLaren, Mills, West, Casella, Hapsari, & ... Yuli Zang, 2015). Community health nurses have the professional knowledge to reduce mortality from these events and are assets in the disaster management stages. There are four stages I will highlight in a disaster management plan and the

Community health nurses are prepared beforehand with their knowledge, skills, and credentialing. They reduce mortality by being current, and ready with the most up-to-date knowledge on decontamination procedures, first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and advanced lifesaving procedures (Nies & McEwen, 2014). The second stage is preparedness and planning. In this stage people have training in first aid, putting together a disaster emergency kit, and possess a plan of where to meet and use communication mediums after a hurricane. Community health nurses are prepared and will reduce mortality by having plans in place, and survival kits ready to use for the work place, family, and the evacuations (Nies & McEwen, 2014). They will assess the community for location of the vulnerable population, their needs, and the needs of community as a whole. They will plan how to gain access to the location of shelters, medical help, and food and water for the community (The Association of Public Health Nurses (APHN), 2013). The third stage is the response stage that starts the moment after the