Emergency healthcare workers’ preparedness for disaster management: An integrative review

Background: Around 2 billion people globally were affected by natural disasters between 2008–2018. The World Health Organization requires countries and governments to have disaster plans and emergency health workers ready and prepared at all times. Objectives: To conduct an integrative review of literature of emergency healthcare workers’ perceived preparedness for disaster management. Methodology: An integrative literature review using the PRISMA checklist guidelines was conducted to explore physicians, nurses, emergency medical services and allied medical professionals’ preparedness for disasters. Literature was searched from 2005, published in the English language and from MEDLINE (PubMed), Google Scholar, EMBASE, PsycINFO, SCOPUS, ProQuest and CINAHL databases. Reviews, case reports, clinical audits, editorials and short communications were excluded. Studies were critically appraised using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Results: The initial search yielded 9589 articles. Twenty-seven articles were included following application of the eligibility criteria. Included studies were geographically diverse including North America, the Middle East and the Asia Pacific. Most studies (n = 24) assessed the knowledge of healthcare workers in general disasters. Studies using the Disaster Preparedness Evaluation Tool reported moderate disaster preparedness and knowledge, while studies using other instruments largely reported inadequate disaster preparedness and knowledge. Regional variations were recorded, with high-income countries’ reporting a higher perceived preparedness for disasters than low-income countries. Conclusion: The majority of the emergency healthcare workers appear to have inadequate disaster preparedness. Previous disaster experience and training improved disaster preparedness. Future research should focus on interventions to improve emergency healthcare workers preparedness for disasters.