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Original research
Jason Patrick Murphy
Karolinska Institutet. Institution for clincal research and education
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4626-3060
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
Background
Major incidents continue to pose a threat to health care systems by overwhelming them with a sudden surge of patients. A major factor impacting a hospital's surge capacity is the skills, abilities, and knowledge of emergency department registered nurses. The level of disaster nursing competency they possess affects patient safety and outcome. ED RNs' ability to accurately assess their competency and knowledge is imperative for mitigating the effect of major incidents. ED RN’s perception of overall disaster preparedness has not been thoroughly addressed. The aim of this study was to assess emergency department registered nurses' self-perceived disaster preparedness.
Method
The study was a cross-sectional study. A self-assessment questionnaire based on the results of a study identifying specific disaster nursing competencies for emergency department registered nurses was distributed to all emergency department registered nurses at six participating hospitals between January 10th to February 19th of 2019. A five-point Likert-type scale was used to assess competency.
Results
Emergency department registered nurses’ disaster preparedness according to the Total Disaster Competency mean, was low. Furthermore, the results indicate that ED RNs’ overestimate their disaster nursing competency when compared to the Total Disaster Competency score. When asked to estimate their overall the mean was ”less than competent” yet higher than the Total Disaster Competency score. Knowledge gaps concerning disaster preparedness plans were also identified. Additionally, this study identified factors associated with disaster preparedness and self-assessment ability.
Conclusion
ED RNs’ overestimate their disaster preparedness and may lack self-awareness concerning their disaster competencies. However, ED RNs with formal disaster education appeared to have better insight concerning their preparedness. Clinical experiences, higher levels of education, and training were positively associated with preparedness. A lack of self-awareness may negatively impact patient outcomes during a major incident.
Keywords
Disaster nursing, self-assessment, major incident, emergency department, registered nurse, disaster preparedness, disaster competency
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A new preprint design is coming!
We have improved readability, clarity, accessibility, and opportunities for engagement.
This is a preprint, a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Original research
Jason Patrick Murphy
Karolinska Institutet. Institution for clincal research and education
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4626-3060
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
History
CURRENT STATUS: Posted
Version 1
Posted 02 Nov, 2020
No community comments so far
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
Background
Major incidents continue to pose a threat to health care systems by overwhelming them with a sudden surge of patients. A major factor impacting a hospital's surge capacity is the skills, abilities, and knowledge of emergency department registered nurses. The level of disaster nursing competency they possess affects patient safety and outcome. ED RNs' ability to accurately assess their competency and knowledge is imperative for mitigating the effect of major incidents. ED RN’s perception of overall disaster preparedness has not been thoroughly addressed. The aim of this study was to assess emergency department registered nurses' self-perceived disaster preparedness.
Method
The study was a cross-sectional study. A self-assessment questionnaire based on the results of a study identifying specific disaster nursing competencies for emergency department registered nurses was distributed to all emergency department registered nurses at six participating hospitals between January 10th to February 19th of 2019. A five-point Likert-type scale was used to assess competency.
Results
Emergency department registered nurses’ disaster preparedness according to the Total Disaster Competency mean, was low. Furthermore, the results indicate that ED RNs’ overestimate their disaster nursing competency when compared to the Total Disaster Competency score. When asked to estimate their overall the mean was ”less than competent” yet higher than the Total Disaster Competency score. Knowledge gaps concerning disaster preparedness plans were also identified. Additionally, this study identified factors associated with disaster preparedness and self-assessment ability.
Conclusion
ED RNs’ overestimate their disaster preparedness and may lack self-awareness concerning their disaster competencies. However, ED RNs with formal disaster education appeared to have better insight concerning their preparedness. Clinical experiences, higher levels of education, and training were positively associated with preparedness. A lack of self-awareness may negatively impact patient outcomes during a major incident.
This is a list of supplementary files associated with this preprint. Click to download.
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