Disaster Healthcare System Management and Crisis Intervention Leadership in Thailand–Lessons Learned from the 2004 Tsunami Disaster

2006 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 299-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rami Peltz ◽  
Issac Ashkenazi ◽  
Dagan Schwartz ◽  
Ofer Shushan ◽  
Guy Nakash ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare System ◽  
Disaster Management ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Home Front ◽  
Medical Department ◽  
Tsunami Disaster ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
Medical Teams ◽  
2004 Tsunami ◽  
Flow Of Information

AbstractIntroduction:Quarantelli established criteria for evaluating the effectiveness of disaster management.Objectives:The objectives of this study were to analyze the response of the healthcare system to the Tsunami disaster according to the Quarantelli principles, and to validate these principles in a scenario of a disaster due to natural hazards.Methods:The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Home Front Command Medical Department sent a research team to study the response of the Thai medical system to the disaster. The analysis of the disaster management was based on Quarantelli's 10 criteria for evaluating the management of community disasters. Data were collected through personal and group interviews.Results:The three most important elements for effective disaster management were: (1) the flow of information; (2) overall coordination; and (3) leadership. Although pre-event preparedness was for different and smaller scenarios, medical teams repeatedly reported a better performance in hospitals that recently conducted drills.Conclusions:In order to increase effectiveness, disaster management response should focus on: (1) the flow of information; (2) overall coordination; and (3) leadership.

Response of Thai Hospitals to the Tsunami Disaster

2006 ◽  
Vol 21 (S1) ◽  
pp. S32-S37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adi Leiba ◽  
Issac Ashkenasi ◽  
Guy Nakash ◽  
Rami Pelts ◽  
Dagan Schwartz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Disaster Management ◽  
Mass Casualty Incident ◽  
Mass Casualty ◽  
Home Front ◽  
Medical Systems ◽  
Medical Department ◽  
Tsunami Disaster ◽  
Medical Response ◽  
Secondary Transfer ◽  
Hospital Preparedness

AbstractThe disaster caused by the Tsunami of 26 December 2004 was one of the worst that medical systems have faced. The aim of this study was to learn about the medical response of the Thai hospitals to this disaster and to establish guidelines that will help hospitals prepare for future disasters.The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Home Front Command (HFC) Medical Department sent a research delegation to Thai hospitals to study: (1) pre-event hospital preparedness; (2) patient evacuation and triage; (3) personnel and equipment reinforcement; (4) modes used for alarm and recruitment of hospital personnel; (5) internal reorganization of hospitals; and (6) admission, discharge, and secondary transfer (forward management) of patients.Thai hospitals were prepared for and drilled for a general mass casualty incident (MCI) involving up to 50 casualties. However, a control system to measure the success of these drills was not identified, and Thai hospitals were not prepared to deal with the unique aspects of a tsunami or to receive thousands of victims.Modes of operation differed between provinces. In Phang Nga and Krabi, many patients were treated in the field. In Phuket, most patients were evacuated early to secondary (district) and tertiary (provincial) hospitals. Hospitals recalled staff rapidly and organized the emergency department for patient triage, treatment, and transfer if needed.Although preparedness was deficient, hospital systems performed well. Disaster management should focus on field-based first aid and triage, and rapid evacuation to secondary hospitals. Additionally, disaster management should reinforce and rely on the existing and well-trusted medical system.

scholarly journals Post-2004 Tsunami: Preparedness of Malaysian coastal communities

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (9) ◽  
pp. 113
Author(s):  
Rustam Khairi Zahari ◽  
Raja Noriza Raja Ariffin ◽  
Zainora Asmawi ◽  
Aisyah Nadhrah Ibrahim
Keyword(s):  
Disaster Management ◽  
Publishing House ◽  
Coastal Communities ◽  
Indian Ocean Tsunami ◽  
Tsunami Disaster ◽  
International Publishing ◽  
The Indian Ocean ◽  
Tsunami Preparedness ◽  
2004 Tsunami ◽  
The Impact

The Indian Ocean tsunami of 26th December 2004 unleashed catastrophe in many nations including coastal communities located along the west-coast of Malaysian Peninsular.  The goal of this study is to explore the impact of the tsunami to the preparedness of the affected coastal communities.   Data was collected through questionnaire, interviews, documents analysis and field observations.  It was found that the 2004 tsunami disaster has left a significant mark on Malaysia's and the world's disaster management landscape but the tragedy has also heightened disaster awareness and steps must be taken to ensure vulnerable communities are well-equipped to face any eventualities. Keywords:  Tsunami; sustainable coastal communities; disaster management; vulnerability. eISSN 2514-7528 © 2018. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open-access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.

Developing a Web-Based Supporting Application for Individual Evacuation Plans Through Hazard Risk and Geographical Analyses

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Munenari Inoguchi ◽  
◽  
Takahiro Sekikawa ◽  
Keiko Tamura ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Disaster Management ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Management Plan ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Disaster Prevention ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Tsunami Disaster ◽  
Evacuation Plans ◽  
Management Plans ◽  
Evacuation Route

After the 2011 East Japan Earthquake, the Japanese Cabinet Office has promoted local governments and communities to develop a “Community Disaster Management Plan.” Local governments started to hold workshops to develop the said plan for residents in local communities. However, only a few residents (i.e., those who are interested in disaster prevention) participate in these workshops; thus, most residents do not have opportunities to survey disaster prevention. Considering this issue, we decided to develop a supporting application for individual disaster management plans by analyzing hazard risks and land features. In this research, we focused on evacuation planning for residents. Furthermore, we developed it as web-based application as any resident connected to the internet may be struggling with their evacuation. In our proposed application, users have to take seven steps: (1) learn features of tsunami attack and countermeasures during a tsunami disaster, (2) set start point for evacuation, (3) set first and second goal for evacuation based on lessons learned from the “Miracle of Kamaishi,” (4) search the shortest evacuation route from start point through the first goal to the second goal, (5) review change of elevation on the evacuation route, (6) review hazard risks and land feature on the evacuation route and to reroute if necessary, and (7) download their settled evacuation route to their own devices as a GPX file. After developing a prototype of the application, we published it as a web service. While the publishing was in process, we gathered logs on how users took actions based on our proposed application. Approximately 10 days after publishing the prototype, we analyzed the path of users’ action flow, and we detected issues that need to be resolved to improve esidents’ disaster management capacity during tsunami disasters. Generally, our application helped prepared users for tsunami disaster prevention.

Prehospital Care of Tsunami Victims in Thailand: Description and Analysis

2006 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 204-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dagan Schwartz ◽  
Avishay Goldberg ◽  
Issac Ashkenasi ◽  
Guy Nakash ◽  
Rami Pelts ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Healthcare System ◽  
Prehospital Care ◽  
Western Coast ◽  
Medical Department ◽  
Disaster Plan ◽  
Healthcare Facilities ◽  
Tsunami Disaster ◽  
Medical Response ◽  
Healthcare Needs

AbstractIntroduction:On 26 December 2004 at 09:00 h, an earthquake of 9.0 magnitude (Richter scale) struck the area off of the western coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia, triggering a Tsunami. As of 25 January 2005, 5,388 fatalities were confirmed, 3,120 people were reported missing, and 8,457 people were wounded in Thailand alone. Little information is available in the medical literature regarding the response and restructuring of the prehospital healthcare system in dealing with major natural disasters.Objective:The objective of the study was to analyze the prehospital medical response to the Tsunami in Thailand, and to identify possible ways of improving future preparedness and response.Methods:The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Home Front Command Medical Department sent a research delegation to study the response of the Thai medical system to the 2004 earthquake and Tsunami disaster. The delegation met with Thai healthcare and military personnel, who provided medical care for and evacuated the Tsunami victims. The research instruments included questionnaires (open and closed questions), interviews, and a review of debriefing session reports held in the days following the Tsunami.Results:Beginning the day after the event, primary health care in the affected provinces was expanded and extended. This included: (1) strengthening existing primary care facilities with personnel and equipment; (2) enhancing communication and transportation capabilities; (3) erecting healthcare facilities in newly constructed evacuation centers; (4) deploying mobile, medical teams to make house calls to flood refugees in affected areas; and (5) deploying ambulance crews to the affected areas to search for survivors and provide primary care triage and transportation.Conclusion:The restructuring of the prehospital healthcare system was crucial for optimal management of the healthcare needs of Tsunami victims and for the reduction of the patient loads on secondary medical facilities. The disaster plan of a national healthcare system should include special consideration for the restructuring and reinforcement prehospital system.

Well-Being of Malaysia's Disaster-Affected Coastal Communities

2015 ◽  
Vol 747 ◽  
pp. 367-370
Author(s):  
Rustam Khairi Zahari ◽  
Raja Noriza Raja Ariffin ◽  
M. Zainora Asmawi ◽  
Aisyah Nadhrah Ibrahim
Keyword(s):  
Disaster Management ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Peninsular Malaysia ◽  
Coastal Communities ◽  
Indian Ocean Tsunami ◽  
Close Attention ◽  
Tsunami Disaster ◽  
Vulnerable Communities ◽  
2004 Tsunami ◽  
The Impact

The 26th December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami unleashed devastation in many countries causing fatalities and massive destruction of properties including a number of coastal communities along the west-coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The objective of this study is to explore the impact of the tsunami to the well-being of the affected coastal communities after a gap of a few years since the 2004 disaster. Close attention was given to the respondents' perceptions with regards to mitigation tools and practices that should be adopted in preparing for any future disasters. Data was collected through questionnaire in tsunami-impacted coastal communities within the area of Kuala Muda in the state of Kedah, Malaysia. It was found that the 2004 tsunami disaster left a significant mark on Malaysia's and the world's disaster management landscape but the tragedy had also scarred the victims in the study area physically, financially and psychologically. The heightened disaster awareness subsequent to the event has further empowered the communities in their involvement in disaster management and steps must be taken to ensure these vulnerable communities are well-equipped to face any eventualities.

scholarly journals Lessons Learned from Development of a Mobile App for Cardiovascular Health Awareness

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 5985
Author(s):  
Bryan Weichelt ◽  
Jeffrey VanWormer ◽  
Yin Xu ◽  
Chris Kadolph ◽  
Simon Lin
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Healthcare System ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Cardiovascular Disease Risk ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Development Processes

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major public health concern in the United States. In response to the federally sponsored Million Hearts Risk Check Challenge, a team of programmers, software developers, health-information technologists, and clinicians in an integrated healthcare system in Wisconsin collaborated to develop Heart Health MobileTM (HHM), designed to improve awareness of cardiovascular disease risk and promote risk factor control among users. This paper outlines the development processes and highlights key lessons learned for mobile health applications. An agile project management methodology was used to dedicate adequate resources and employ adaptive planning and iterative development processes with a self-organized, cross-functional team. The initial HHM iOS app was developed and tested, and after additional modifications, gamified and HTML 5 versions of the app were released. The development of an iOS app is low in cost and sustainable by a healthcare system. Future app modifications to enhance data security and link self-reported cardiovascular risk assessment data to patient medical records may improve performance, patient relevance, and clinician acceptance of HHM in the primary-care setting. Legal and institutional barriers regarding the capture and analyses of protected health information must be mitigated to fully capture, analyze, and report patient health outcomes for future studies.

scholarly journals The Hyogo Framework for Action and its implications for disaster management and reduction in Africa

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dejo Olowu
Keyword(s):  
Risk Reduction ◽  
Disaster Management ◽  
Disaster Risk Reduction ◽  
Disaster Risk ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Global Policy ◽  
The World ◽  
Hyogo Framework For Action ◽  
Economic Assets ◽  
Policy And Planning

At the World Conference on Disaster Reduction, Hyogo, Japan, in January 2005, the international community adopted a 10-year plan to make the world safer from disasters. The resultant Hyogo Framework for Action is the global blueprint for disaster risk reduction with the goal of substantially reducing disaster losses in human lives and socio-economic assets. What is the signi!cance of the HFA for the adoption of disaster prevention, management and risk reduction frameworks in African States? Since 2005, what has been the attitude of African States to the promise of the HFA? In terms of policy and planning, how should African States engage the HFA towards securing human lives and properties against natural and human-induced disasters? With the myriad challenges of mass poverty and underdevelopment across Africa, what implications does the HFA hold for disaster risk reduction and management in African States? This article attempts to address this plethora of questions, drawing on lessons learned in Africa and beyond. The article examines the background of the HFA and its progress in shaping the global policy agenda towards disaster management and reduction. While the article acknowledges some of the inherent weaknesses in the promise of the HFA, it nonetheless accentuates its inimitable implications for broad legal and policy strategies towards ameliorating the usual horrific aftermath of disasters in Africa.

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