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Educating First Responders to Provide Emergency Services to Individuals with Disabilities

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 December 2014

Susan B. Wolf-Fordham ,
Janet S. Twyman  and
Charles D. Hamad
Susan B. Wolf-Fordham*
Affiliation:
University of Massachusetts Medical School, E.K. Shriver Center, Charlestown, Massachusetts.
Janet S. Twyman
Affiliation:
University of Massachusetts Medical School, E.K. Shriver Center, Charlestown, Massachusetts.
Charles D. Hamad
Affiliation:
University of Massachusetts Medical School, E.K. Shriver Center, Charlestown, Massachusetts.
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Susan B. Wolf-Fordham, University of Massachusetts Medical School, E.K. Shriver Center, 465 Medford Street, 5th floor, Charlestown, MA 02129 (e-mail: [email protected]).
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Abstract

Objective

Individuals with disabilities experience more negative outcomes due to natural and manmade disasters and emergencies than do people without disabilities. This vulnerability appears to be due in part to knowledge gaps among public health and safety emergency planning and response personnel (responders). We assessed the effectiveness of an online program to increase emergency responder knowledge about emergency planning and response for individuals with disabilities.

Methods

Researchers developed an online course designed to teach public health, emergency planning and management, and other first response personnel about appropriate, efficient, and equitable emergency planning, response, interaction, and communication with children and adults with disabilities before, during, and after disasters or emergencies. Course features included an ongoing storyline, exercises embedded in the form of real-life scenarios, and game-like features such as points and timed segments.

Results

Evaluation measures indicated significant pre- to post-test gains in learner knowledge and simulated applied skills.

Conclusion

An online program using scenarios and simulations is an effective way to make disability-related training available to a wide variety of emergency responders across geographically disparate areas. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2014;8:533-540)

Keywords

disaster planningemergency preparednessemergency respondersvulnerable populations
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 8 , Supplement 6 , December 2014 , pp. 533 - 540
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2014 

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