Background: Nurses, as the largest group in providing relief during disasters with their specialized skills, should be sufficiently prepared to provide the highest level of health care. By compiling predisaster preparedness programs, the provided healthcare would be promoted and number of casualties and incoordination in allocated tasks be reduced. This study was conducted to evaluate nurses’ preparedness in response to disasters in South Khorasan Province, Iran.
Materials and Methods: In this correlational descriptive study, working nurses in provincial hospitals were chosen by systematic random sampling. The study data were collected with a 3-part questionnaire: demographic information, items assessing the capabilities in disaster (clinical competency, survival skills, operational competency), and items regarding their viewpoints (personal and psychological readiness, team integration, and administrative support). The questionnaire was rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale. Total score in each field is divided by the number of questions, in which 5 is the highest, and 1 the lowest. All data were analyzed by SPSS16. The significant level was set at P≤0.05.
Results: Out of 304 hospital nurses working in 10 health centers throughout the province, 71.1% were female, 27.21% had 3-5 years of job experience, 96.4% had BS in nursing, and 57.9% were the staff of educational hospitals. The mean (SD) score for nurses’ preparedness (competency and attitude) was 3.4(0.64). The mean (SD) score for nurses’ competency was 3.25 (0.72), and average score for nurses’ attitude was 3.53(0.5). There was a significant correlation between nurses’ competency score and their gender and work experience (P≤0.05).
Conclusion: Regarding the nurses’ preparedness score, it is recommended that they be provided with training courses on disaster preparedness through workshops and or training exercises.