Disaster Recovery Plan Script

Disaster Recovery Plan Script

Hello and welcome to this PowerPoint presentation on a disaster recovery plan. In this presentation, we will discuss the various determinants of health with emphasis on the social, economic, and cultural barriers to health. We will also outline a disaster recovery plan for the Valley City Regional Hospital covering the vast North Dakota area, and how this plan can address health disparity and poor access to healthcare. We will as well discuss the role of the government and how policies and regulations designed by the government can improve the lives of persons affected by these disasters.

Introduction

Public health disasters are far-reaching, frequent, and present humanitarian crises to affected communities. Millions of people are affected by natural and artificial disasters yearly. Earthquakes, hurricanes, and tornadoes are some of the catastrophic events that have led to a massive crisis, with mass deaths and injuries being realized. For a long time, these disastrous events have significantly impacted communities’ socioeconomic, lifestyles, and health. The Valley City incident that took place some time back is a representation of how these catastrophic events can impact communities. In the absence of preparedness and strategies to curtail these catastrophes, the impact is even greater. As evident in this case, six lives were lost, and the hospital staff at Valley City Regional Hospital were overwhelmed by the large number of patients presenting at the ED. Disaster management and recovery plans minimize the effects of these catastrophic events (Giorgadze et al., 2019). These strategies put down measures to prepare for such events and respond promptly and effectively to these disasters whenever they occur. Contact us at eminencepapers.com. Our homework help will save you tons of energy and time required for your homework paper.

Determinants of Health

Healthy People 2020 and Healthy People 2030 describes the determinants of health as factors that make some people healthy and other unhealthy, as well as factors that preserve the lives of community members and makes them live longer. The determinants of health can be classified as social, physical, biological, and health service-related. Social determinants of health encompass factors affecting where an individual lives, such as their socioeconomic status, social support, and safety. Physical health determinants include the natural environment, housing, and physical barriers such as disabilities. Biologic factors include genetic predisposition to specific diseases, age, and gender (“Determinants of Health | Healthy People 2020”, 2022). Access to health services is also defined as a determinant of health.

Cultural, Social and Economic barriers that Impact Health and Safety

The determinants of health describe factors that make individuals healthy within their communities. Social, economic, and cultural barriers negatively impact healthy living and have been implicated in unwellness. The previous catastrophic event that hit Valley City demonstrated specific barriers to the health and safety of communities living in this region. As reported by the hospital’s CFO, the facility is having a tough stretch characterized by inadequate finances and significant budget constraints. The hospital is even contemplating laying off its employees. The consequence is short staffing, and the hospital may once again be overwhelmed in the wake of a disaster. Additionally, much hospital equipment is outdated and out of shape. Budgetary constraints may also present supply issues as the hospital may be unable to procure the necessary equipment required in disaster responses. This may negatively impact how they respond to disasters (Loignon et al., 2019). Social barriers to health include exposure to crime and violence, lack of social support, insecurity, unavailability of resources such as healthy food, and poor socioeconomic status. In the Valley city’s case, there is a significant number of residents who are homeless. Homelessness remains a barrier to health and safety. The presence of multiple ethnicities in this region may present considerable cultural barriers to care provision. Cultural barriers to health and safety include negative beliefs about the healthcare system, childbearing practices, family values, and poor health-seeking behavior due to belief in alternative health remedies. Despite Valley city being majorly composed of whites, an effective plan must address cultural issues that may be presented by other minorities living in this region. Additionally, due to the presence of an unknown number of immigrants who have limited English proficiency, measures should be taken to ensure that they also receive care services. When developing a disaster recovery plan for a potentially catastrophic event, cultural, social, and economic barriers should all be taken into consideration.

The Recovery Plan Processes

The Healthy people 2020 recommends the MAP IT framework for assessing public health problems like disasters. The MAP IT framework outlines mobilization of collaborating partners, assessing the community needs, disaster recovery plan, implementation, and tracking. Mobilization of collaborating partners is the first step in this plan. Involves defining the goals of the plan, mobilizing potential partners and players in the plan, and assigning each player a specific role. In our recovery plan, the potential partners are the healthcare providers, the police, the fire department, relief organizations such as the American Red Cross, and the local government. Assessing the community’s needs is another vital process. Community needs are vast and range from the healthcare services likely to be required, community demographics to isolate the risk groups such as those with disabilities and the elderly, and the availability of healthcare resources within these communities. Valley city has a population of slightly above 8,000 with over 200 persons having chronic illnesses and 22% being 65 years and above. these groups may require special considerations during the recovery phase, principally due to debilitation and functional loss. In this regard, ambulatory logistics need to be as well mobilized and assessed to cater for these groups. Assessing the needs of the community gives information on the position of the community in handling catastrophic events and the likely impact of these events on the community members.

The Disaster Recovery Plan

A disaster recovery plan is a structured approach to dealing with a disaster and returning to normalcy. In public health, a disaster recovery plan will outline the measures taken to prevent a disaster, mitigate its effects, enhance preparedness for the disaster, and how to respond and recover from the disaster. In a disaster recovery plan, the goals should be defined, strategies to achieve this goal well established, and a framework for evaluation stated. The goal is to minimize damages caused by the impending catastrophic event. There are high alerts for tornadoes in Valley city. Our recovery plan will therefore be centered on recovering from the effects of the impending tornadoes and, in the long term, any other imminent disaster. The first step is to take measures to avoid the disaster. This entails laying down measures to avert the imminent catastrophic event, such as surveillance and deterring operations within the community. Several players will then be mobilized and drawn into the mitigating plans for the disasters. Mitigation efforts will entail the construction of barriers to prevent flooding, organizing and mobilizing a triage team, designing a framework for recalling nurses, collaborating with the National Disaster Response and Recovery (NDRR) to follow up disaster victims and putting the fire department and the Department of Energy on a high alert. This is then followed by enhancing preparedness. Preparedness entails resource mobilization and capacity expansion to deal with the disaster. Resources mobilization is necessary since the hospital is already running on a low budget. FEMA offers financial assistance to local governments and care institutions whenever such catastrophes strike. The hospital can, in this regard, liaise with the local authorities to secure some funding from this agency.

Implementation and Tracking

Implementation involves an actual fulfillment of the plan. This step requires collaboration with key stakeholders within the plan. The implementation process entails the actual execution of the plan. This will range from healthcare resource expansion, increasing the number of caregivers by mobilizing the available resources and outsourcing through organizations like the Red Cross. In our recovery plan, non-governmental organizations such as the American Red Cross, the salvation army, and the CDC will help in evacuations if necessary, Valley city hospital will provide healthcare assistance to those who will need it. All nurses who are not on duty will be recalled and assigned duties at the ED to ensure maximal care provision. The hospital will work in collaboration with non-governmental organizations and the already established triage team to triage incoming patients, thereby enhancing the efficiency of care. The fire department will be on high alert to combat any fire incidence that may be apparent. The Department of Energy will also work to restore electricity in case of any shortages. The American Red Cross and the Salvation Army will assist in providing humanitarian aid to those who may require it. The NDRR will be tasked with following up on the disaster victims after the disaster. They will work collaboratively with the hospital and other stakeholders to ensure that all residents return to their normal lives and that those who require humanitarian aid get it. An effective communication plan is developed to enhance communication processes during an emergency. Tracking involves the evaluation of the plan to determine if it is in alignment with the plan. It is done to assess whether the executed plan meets the set objectives.

Disparities and Access to Healthcare

Despite the impact of disasters being felt by all community members, the effect is exacerbated in the presence of health disparities and poor access to care in some communities. Social justice requires that communities have access to resources and that services with these communities are equitable. In Valley city, access to care remains a challenge. As seen in the case, the hospital’s bed capacity is nearing its maximum capacity, and its available resources are wearing out while some are completely out of shape. These resources may not be utilizable in the wake of a catastrophe. To improve access to care, collaborations with other care organizations such as the American Red Cross, the CDC, and the Salvation Army expand resources and increase the presence of caregivers in these communities. Funds can also be allocated for healthcare infrastructural and resource expansion. Health disparities may also be apparent in the Valley city case. Disparities are likely to be against the minor ethnicities such as the Latinos and the African Americans, the undocumented immigrant population in this region, and persons with disabilities. To lessen disparities, caregivers must exhibit cultural sensitivity towards different cultures within these societies. Cultural sensitivity refers to the understanding of the differences and similarities of cultures within communities. It enables assigning of values to people despite having these differences. Understanding and appreciating the differences in cultures is key to eliminating disparities. Societies and governments should also appreciate the diverse nature of communities and respects human rights (Lichtveld, 2018). The recovery plan outlined will undertake these measures as a strategy to lessen disparities in communities.

Impact of Health on the Recovery Plan

Disaster recovery entails all activities taken towards returning to normalcy. This entails activities such as debris clean-up, financial assistance to the affected groups, and infrastructural reconstruction. The swiftness of the recovery processes depends on the health of these communities. A healthy community is likely to recover faster from disastrous events. This is because good health guarantees the workforce and economic reproduction required for the recovery phase. For this reason, the health of communities should remain a priority, and efforts should be taken to preserve it to ensure a quick recovery.

Impact of Government Policy

Government policies and regulations are targeted at ensuring the well-being of communities. Several policies have been developed that ensure healthy communities and safeguard their safety. During recovery, access to healthcare is paramount. The Stafford Act is an important piece of legislation that provides relief to Americans. This act founded the Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator that helps disaster victims. The Americans with Disability Act (ADA) is another legislation that safeguards persons living with disabilities against discrimination and guarantees them the same opportunity as other Americans. The Disaster Recovery Reform Act is legislation that ensures expanded capacity to handle catastrophic events, assists the functionalities of the Federal Emergency Management Act (FEMA), and helps in disaster response and recovery. FEMA coordinates disaster responses within the U.S. this federal agency financially assists states and local governments with flood prevention efforts and in preparation for other disasters. This agency may be pivotal in the disaster preparation of the Valley city. As evident in the case reports, the city is on high alert for tornadoes. This agency may assist in enhancing the preparedness as well as in prevention efforts for the expected flooding. Other organizations such as the Red Cross and the Salvation army may as well be mobilized to provide humanitarian aid to communities in Valley city.

Strategies to Overcome Communication Barriers

The implementation and assessment of disaster recovery plans draw multiple players and stakeholders. Effective communications remain the cornerstone for interprofessional collaborations and efficient service delivery. Since Valley city is a multilingual, multicultural region, communication barriers are likely to exist. Language barriers may impede communications between caregivers and immigrants with poor English proficiency. To overcome these barriers, several strategies can be used. Caregivers participating in this recovery plan will be educated on strategies for ensuring effective communication and eliminating language barriers. Such strategies include active listening, being clear and non-ambiguous, being patient, paying attention, and communicating one thing at a time. An interpreter will also be availed to bridge the communication gap between the caregivers and the communities.

Strategies to Enhance Collaboration

Interprofessional collaboration is vital in disaster responses. Interprofessional collaboration utilizes a concerted approach to service delivery. Its significance in enhancing the efficiency of service delivery underpins its utility. In the Valley city recovery plan, healthcare professionals, care organizations, and communities will be mobilized to help in the preparation and actual recovery. In this regard, a training session will be organized that simulates an actual disaster, and the roles of each player defined in this training. Additionally, every player will be trained on effective strategies for interprofessional collaborations, such as effective communication, role specification, and respect. A managing body will be instituted to oversee the entire operation. This body will be tasked with assigning each player a specific role, directing activities, and reporting on the state of the operationalization.

Summary

In summary, developing a disaster recovery plan remains key in overall disaster management. Disastrous events, despite affecting communities in equal measures, the problem is usually exacerbated in communities with historical problems of access to care and health disparity. Therefore, these issues must be addressed in the wake of these disasters. Essentially, the government plays a role in developing policies that promote the health and safety of the communities. Such policies positively impact these communities and have been pivotal in preserving the health of these individuals. The success of disaster recovery processes is, however, dependent on effective communication and interprofessional collaborations.

References

Determinants of Health | Healthy People 2020. Healthypeople.gov. (2022). Retrieved 10 June 2022, from https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/about/foundation-health-measures/Determinants-of-Health.

Giorgadze, T., Maisuradze, I., Japaridze, A., Utiashvili, Z., & Abesadze, G. (2011). Disasters and their consequences for public health. Georgian medical news, (194), 59–63.

Jones, T. (2022). Steps of Emergency Management. stlouis-mo.gov. Retrieved 10 June 2022, from https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/government/departments/public-safety/emergency-management/about/Steps-of-Emergency-Management.cfm.

Lichtveld, M. (2018). Disasters Through the Lens of Disparities: Elevate Community Resilience as an Essential Public Health Service. American Journal Of Public Health, 108(1), 28-30. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2017.304193

Loignon, C., Hudon, C., Goulet, É., Boyer, S., De Laat, M., & Fournier, N. et al. (2019). Perceived barriers to healthcare for persons living in poverty in Quebec, Canada: the EQUIhealThY project. International Journal For Equity In Health, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-015-0135-5

The Scientific World. (2019). Importance of Good Health in Our Life – How can We Achieve Good Health and Well Being?. The Scientific World – Let’s have a moment of science. Retrieved 11 June 2022, from https://www.scientificworldinfo.com/2019/12/importance-of-good-health-in-our-life.html.

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Develop a disaster recovery plan to lessen health disparities and improve access to community services after a disaster. Then, develop and record a 10-12 slide presentation (please refer to the PowerPoint tutorial) of the plan with audio and speaker notes for the Vila Health system, city officials, and the disaster relief team.

As you begin to prepare this assessment, you are encouraged to complete the Disaster Preparedness and Management activity. The information gained from completing this activity will help you succeed with the assessment as you think through key issues in disaster preparedness and management in the community or workplace. Completing activities is also a way to demonstrate engagement.

Professional Context

Nurses perform a variety of roles and their responsibilities as health care providers extend to the community. The decisions we make daily and in times of crisis often involve the balancing of human rights with medical necessities, equitable access to services, legal and ethical mandates, and financial constraints. In the event of a major accident or natural disaster, many issues can complicate decisions concerning the needs of an individual or group, including understanding and upholding rights and desires, mediating conflict, and applying established ethical and legal standards of nursing care. As a nurse, you must be knowledgeable about disaster preparedness and recovery to safeguard those in your care. As an advocate, you are also accountable for promoting equitable services and quality care for the diverse community.

Nurses work alongside first responders, other professionals, volunteers, and the health department to safeguard the community. Some concerns during a disaster and recovery period include the possibility of death and infectious disease due to debris and/or contamination of the water, air, food supply, or environment. Various degrees of injury may also occur during disasters, terrorism, and violent conflicts.

To maximize survival, first responders must use a triage system to assign victims according to the severity of their condition/prognosis in order to allocate equitable resources and provide treatment. During infectious disease outbreaks, triage does not take the place of routine clinical triage.

Trace-mapping becomes an important step to interrupting the spread of all infectious diseases to prevent or curtail morbidity and mortality in the community. A vital step in trace-mapping is the identification of the infectious individual or group and isolating or quarantining them. During the trace-mapping process, these individuals are interviewed to identify those who have had close contact with them. Contacts are notified of their potential exposure, testing referrals become paramount, and individuals are connected with appropriate services they might need during the self-quarantine period (CDC, 2020).

An example of such disaster is the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. People who had contact with someone who were in contact with the COVID-19 virus were encouraged to stay home and maintain social distance (at least 6 feet) from others until 14 days after their last exposure to a person with COVID-19. Contacts were required to monitor themselves by checking their temperature twice daily and watching for symptoms of COVID-19 (CDC, 2020). Local, state, and health department guidelines were essential in establishing the recovery phase. Triage Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) in the case of COVID-19 focused on inpatient and outpatient health care facilities that would be receiving, or preparing to receive, suspected, or confirmed COVID- 19 victims. Controlling droplet transmission through hand washing, social distancing, self-quarantine, PPE, installing barriers, education, and standardized triage algorithm/questionnaires became essential to the triage system (CDC, 2020; WHO, 2020).

This assessment provides an opportunity for you to apply the concepts of emergency preparedness, public health assessment, triage, management, and surveillance after a disaster. You will also focus on evacuation, extended displacement periods, and contact tracing based on the disaster scenario provided.

Demonstration of Proficiency

By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assessment criteria:

Competency 1: Analyze health risks and health care needs among distinct populations.
Describe the determinants of health and the cultural, social, and economic barriers that impact safety, health, and disaster recovery efforts in a community.
Competency 2: Propose health promotion strategies to improve the health of populations.
Present specific, evidence-based strategies to overcome communication barriers and enhance interprofessional collaboration to improve disaster recovery efforts.
Competency 3: Evaluate health policies, based on their ability to achieve desired outcomes.
Explain how health and governmental policy affect disaster recovery efforts.
Competency 4: Integrate principles of social justice in community health interventions.
Explain how a proposed disaster recovery plan will lessen health disparities and improve access to community services.
Competency 5: Apply professional, scholarly communication strategies to lead health promotion and improve population health.
Organize content with clear purpose/goals and with relevant and evidence-based sources (published within 5 years).
Slides are easy to read and error free. Detailed audio and speaker notes are provided. Audio is clear, organized, and professionally presented.
Note: Complete the assessments in this course in the order in which they are presented.

Preparation

When disaster strikes, community members must be protected. A comprehensive recovery plan, guided by the MAP-IT (Mobilize, Assess, Plan, Implement, Track) framework, is essential to help ensure everyone’s safety. The unique needs of residents must be assessed to lessen health disparities and improve access to equitable services after a disaster. Recovery efforts depend on the appropriateness of the plan, the extent to which key stakeholders have been prepared, the quality of the trace-mapping, and the allocation of available resources. In a time of cost containment, when personnel and resources may be limited, the needs of residents must be weighed carefully against available resources.

In this assessment, you are a community task force member responsible for developing a disaster recovery plan for the Vila Health community using MAP-IT and trace-mapping, which you will present to city officials and the disaster relief team.

To prepare for the assessment, complete the Vila Health: Disaster Recovery Scenario simulation.

In addition, you are encouraged to complete the Disaster Preparedness and Management activity. The information gained from completing this activity will help you succeed with the assessment as you think through key issues in disaster preparedness and management in the community or workplace. Completing activities is also a way to demonstrate engagement.

Begin thinking about:

Community needs.
Resources, personnel, budget, and community makeup.
People accountable for implementation of the disaster recovery plan.
Healthy People 2020 goals and 2030 objectives.
A timeline for the recovery effort.
You may also wish to:

Review the MAP-IT (Mobilize, Assess, Plan, Implement, Track) framework, which you will use to guide the development of your plan:
Mobilize collaborative partners.
Assess community needs.
Plan to lessen health disparities and improve access to services.
Implement a plan to reach Healthy People 2020 goals or 2030 objectives.
Track community progress.
Review the assessment instructions and scoring guide to ensure that you understand the work you will be asked to complete.
Note: Remember that you can submit all, or a portion of, your draft recovery plan to Smarthinking Tutoring for feedback, before you submit the final version for this assessment. If you plan on using this free service, be mindful of the turnaround time of 24-48 hours for receiving feedback.

Note: If you require the use of assistive technology or alternative communication methods to participate in this activity, please contact DisabilityServices@capella.edu to request accommodations.

Instructions

Every 10 years, The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion release information on health indicators, public health issues, and current trends. At the end of 2020, Healthy People 2030 was released to provide information for the next 10 years. Healthy People 2030 provides the most updated content when it comes to prioritizing public health issues; however, there are historical contents that offer a better understanding of some topics. Disaster preparedness is addressed in Healthy People 2030, but a more robust understanding of MAP-IT, triage, and recovery efforts is found in Healthy People 2020. For this reason, you will find references to both Healthy People 2020 and Healthy People 2030 in this course.