Disasters could happen at any time whether it be natural or man-made. When something like this happens, we need people to come together and help make things better/ easier. Nurses could be a big help when it comes to caring for victims of a disaster. Nurses are leaders, educators, responders, policymakers, and researchers when it comes to disaster preparedness and the response. Although nurses will be assisting with the aftermath of a disaster in a health care facility, emergency preparedness and disaster planning could also come in handy when not at work. For example, if a registered nurse is driving by and sees an accident that just happened, they should stop and use their skillset to make sure the people in the accident are stay stable enough until they are taken to the hospital. They could use their knowledge on how to feel for pulses and assess the state of the victims so when the first responders come you could give them a small report. We also were told in class that it could come in handy to leave a blood pressure cuff, a stethoscope, and a first aid kit in the trunk of your car since you never know when or where you will need it. You always want to be prepared as a medical professional to help.

            Using the accident as an example when also talking about Provision 2 of the ANA Code of Ethics. This states that the nurse’s primary responsibility is to the patient, yet Provision 5 states that a nurse owes the same duty to self. I am thinking about if the accident had a car that was on fire, and the person was still in the car. Obviously as a nurse you want to help and you want to make that person your priority however, it may be dangerous to attempt to get that person out. In a natural disaster such as a tornado, a nurse may help with the victims. There may be people under rubbish or under a building that is not very stable. In these situations, you must think about the chances of you as the nurse getting hurt. Nurses will not be able to save patients if they are the ones getting hurt trying to care and save people in disaster situations. I feel as though emergency preparedness is a very important skill a nurse could have. It would enable them to be ready to help in any given moment at any place. There are crazy incidents that happen all the time that no one is ever prepared for. It would make the lives of the people effected easier if we had experienced nurses trying to help.