Can someone please tell me about disaster drills?

nursy2b · Jun 12, 2004

http://caringforyou.net/disaster.html I wish I would have read this before the test...I like you had great grades in school and I am sitting here now wondering why I failed! good luck to u...My friend did pass with 265 questions...

I have looked for this info everywhere and it is nowhere to be found in any of my texts or study guides. What is the difference between an internal vs external disaster drill? Do you assess differently? Do you prioritize differently? I chose the highest priority patient for each but it couldn't have been correct because I kept getting more questions in the same category. Is there a website, book - somewhere I can learn about these. It was never even mentioned in school. Thanks for any information

iliket3 · Jun 12, 2004

That is so funny that you posted that because that is the one site I found and read. Like you boy do I wish I would have read the delegation, management and disaster information before. Than I would have been sailing. The disaster area site was a little gray for me so I was hoping someone could give me a short breakdown of each. But I absolutely understand how you feel. And thanks.

katzrkool · Jun 12, 2004

http://caringforyou.net/disaster.html I wish I would have read this before the test...I like you had great grades in school and I am sitting here now wondering why I failed! good luck to u...My friend did pass with 265 questions...

I can't seem to get onto this site - is there more to the web address?? I would love to read it before I go to test. I keep getting a message that the page can't be displayed. Thanks

prmenrs, RN · Jun 12, 2004

That link didn't work for me either.

An INTERNAL disaster means something's wrong inside the hospital, it affects only your facility. examples: electrical/oxygen/suction outages; we had one once when lightning hit a transformer--power outage in the city AND our emergency generator was knocked out. They were calling any one who lived close to the hospital to come in to handbag the pts on ventilators! You might have to transfer pts to another facility for care. Internal disasters are not really the same thing as fires.

An EXTERNAL disaster affects the entire community, like a plane crash. We had one recently were a school bus tipped over. Minor injuries, but lots of them. Anytime the hospital (or several hospitals) is going to receive a lot of patients in a very short time, they will initiate a disaster code. If it's a really big disaster, the community may activate a disaster response.

Don't know if that helps, hope so.

rainbows4me · Jun 14, 2004

Here is the correct link for the disaster site:

http://caring4you.net/disaster.html

Thanks for posting it - I hope it will be helpful for answering those questions on the NCLEX on wednesday (!!!???)

Rainbows:balloons:

suzanne4, RN · Jun 14, 2004

Good site..................thank you! (My students will appreciate it.) :balloons:

happystudent, RN · Jun 14, 2004

Thanks for the site... very helpful

laurakoko · Jun 15, 2004

Oh, I think this is a thing for me to reply to. I know about external disasters, as I live in lower Louisiana, and the hurricane season is a doozy. I know every nurse, administration, CNAs, and ancillary staff is on call. I was called in for hurricane George, and had to move the patients we absolutley could not discharge, to other hospitals. (Because our hospital was evacuated.) Our staff then reported to the other hospitals while we spent days there. We were well compensated, (we were paid our hourly rate for 24 hours, even if we worked 8 hours.) We ended up staying 3 days before our hospital reopened. After the disaster,there were SO many controversies regarding who went and who got to stay with their families, MANY nurses had big issues. At the time, I was a single nurse, without children, and went to help. Now, my circumstances are different. My husband is a captian fireman, and is to report to duty, regardless of any family life. (Especially since 9/11).Therefore, I am the only one to care now, for my 3 children, and all has changed. I hope if another disaster takes place, my administration takes in to consideration my circumstances. However, I do want to do my part, in any way I can, even if it means bringing my children to the hospital. Now I think my hospital has implemented a plan to be able to bring children in case of emergencies, and have set up nurses, rotating shifts, to care care for the little ones. :)

happylush · Jun 15, 2004

So unless the question specifically asks for triage, in a disaster drill you would help out the least injured people first and come back and help the rest if there was time/help etc, but in triage, you would go by the most critical first and everyone else can wait?

suzanne4, RN · Jun 16, 2004

So unless the question specifically asks for triage, in a disaster drill you would help out the least injured people first and come back and help the rest if there was time/help etc, but in triage, you would go by the most critical first and everyone else can wait?

No. At the scene of the accident, the person who is triaging is going to get the "walking wounded" out first, then you go through RPM and triage the others. You work form healthiest with best chance for survival and go doen the line. Triage is also done at the scene. It means "to sort."

At the hospital, the most critical gets taken care of first. A reversal of what was done at the scene. You don't go by the word "triage" but where the person is, at the scene or at the facility.

happylush · Jun 16, 2004

ok ,gotcha. Thanks for the clarification! :)