Health Risks and Challenges in Earthquake Responders in Nepal: A Qualitative Research

Abstract

Introduction:While the impact of disasters is strongly felt by those directly affected, they also have significant impact on the mental and physical health of rescue/relief workers and volunteers during the response phase of disaster management.Method:Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 experts in the field of disaster management from Nepal, inquiring specifically about the impact of the 2015 mega-earthquake on the mental and physical health of rescue/relief workers and volunteers. A thematic approach was used to analyze the results. These were used to assess the applicability of a previously developed conceptual framework which illustrates the hazards and risk factors affecting disaster response workers and the related hazard mitigation approaches.Results:The findings suggested a relationship between the type of injuries to responders and the type of disaster, type of responder, and vulnerability of location. The conceptual framework derived from literature was verified for its applicability with a slight revision on analysis of experts’ opinion based on particular context and disaster setting. Technical skills of responders, social stigma, governance, and the socio-economic status of the affected nation were identified as critical influencing factors to heath injuries and could be minimized utilizing some specific or collective measures targeted at the aforementioned variables. Some geographic and weather-specific risks may be challenging to overcome.Conclusion:To prevent or minimize the hazards for disaster relief workers, it is vital to understand the variables that contribute to injuries. Risk minimization strategies should address these critical factors.

Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure Work-Related Stress among Rescue Workers in Traumatic Mass-Casualty Disasters

“…Our results are consistent with what has been found in previous studies that have explored the high physical and mental health risks faced by disaster responders [4,29]. In our interviews, participants expressed a lack of preparation for deployment, specifically a lack of rest and poor sleep quality.…”

Analysis of Resilience, Coping Style, Anxiety, and Depression Among Rescue Nurses on EMTs During the Disaster Preparedness Stage in Sichuan, China: A Descriptive Cross-Sectional Survey

“…In recent years, resilience has been regarded as a key factor in reducing disaster risk; it is the individual's ability to survive accidents and the ability to resist disasters, recover and reorganize to deal with disasters. 16,18,19 The disaster management principles comprise 4 phases: prevention, preparedness, response, reconstruction, and recovery (PPRR). The World Health Organization (WHO) divides the entire disaster process into 3 stages: pre-disaster (disaster prevention, disaster preparedness), during a disaster (response during a disaster), and after a disaster (reconstruction and recovery).…”

Intellectual structure and trends in the humanitarian operations field

“…The keyword, co-occurrence approach also has a certain limitation, since the quantitative method of word count is not able to distinguish the context in which the keywords are used in the original articles. For example, the keyword, “resilience” appears with a connecting force that places it as an intermediate research pole, although, in the field under study, this word has different connotations, which may mean resilience of communities in the face of disasters (Papadopoulos et al, 2017 ), resilience of workers working in disaster environments (Khatri et al, 2019 ), and supply chain resilience (commercial or humanitarian) in the face of disaster impacts (Dubey et al, 2020 ; Papadopoulos et al, 2017 ). However, it is understood that this does not remove the interest in the topic for future research, as there is a lack of studies that better clarify the meanings of resilience in the context of disasters (Singh et al, 2018 ).…”