Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T11:02:46.342Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Perceptions of the Utility and Acceptability of an Emergency Child Minding Service for Health Staff

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 December 2014

Jenine Lawlor ,
Richard C. Franklin ,
Peter Aitken ,
Bethany Hooke ,
Jeremy Furyk  and
Andrew Johnson
Jenine Lawlor*
Affiliation:
College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
Richard C. Franklin
Affiliation:
College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
Peter Aitken
Affiliation:
College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia Townsville Hospital and Health Services, Emergency Department, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.
Bethany Hooke
Affiliation:
Townsville Hospital and Health Services, Emergency Department, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.
Jeremy Furyk
Affiliation:
College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia Townsville Hospital and Health Services, Emergency Department, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.
Andrew Johnson
Affiliation:
College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia Townsville Hospital and Health Services, Emergency Department, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Jenine Lawlor, The Townsville Hospital, PO Box 670, Townsville QLD 4810, Australia (e-mail: [email protected]).
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Objective

Tropical Cyclone Yasi in North Queensland activated the disaster management plans at The Townsville Hospital, including the establishment of an emergency child minding service to facilitate the return of staff to work.

Methods

This report describes the establishment of this service and the results of brief electronic surveys that were distributed in the 2 weeks following the cyclone to gather feedback from staff who had placed their children in the care of the service (consumers), staff who had manned the service (staff), and allied health managers whose staff had manned the service (managers).

Results

Overall, approximately 94 episodes of care were provided by the child minding service. All consumers responded “‘yes’” in answer to the question of whether the emergency child minding service facilitated their return to work in the immediate post-disaster period. The survey also identified that a lack of effective advertising may have prevented further uptake of the child minding service.

Conclusions

The provision of an emergency child minding service facilitated the return to work of health care staff immediately after Tropical Cyclone Yasi. More research is needed to understand the effect disaster type has on the uptake of a child minding service. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2014;8:485-488)

Keywords

disaster planningcyclonic stormsemergency responders
Type
Brief Reports
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 8 , Supplement 6 , December 2014 , pp. 485 - 488
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Department of Health and Ageing. National Health Disaster Management Capability Audit 2008. Canberra, Australia: Australian Government; 2010.Google Scholar
2. Iserson, K, Heine, C, Larkin, G, et al. Fight or flight: the ethics of emergency physician disaster response. Ann Emerg Med. 2008;51(4):345-353.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
3. Qureshi, K, Gershon, R, Sherman, M, et al. Health care workers’ ability and willingness to report to duty during catastrophic disasters. J Urban Health. 2005;82:378-388.Google Scholar
4. Fowler, R, Guest, C, Stephen, L, et al. Transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome during intubation and mechanical ventilation. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2004;169(11):1198-1202.Google Scholar
5. Davidson, J, Sekayan, A, Agan, D, et al. Disaster dilemma: factors affecting decision to come to work during a natural disaster. Adv Emerg Nurs J. 2009;31(3):248-257.Google Scholar
6. Buttross, S. Responding creatively to family needs of hospital staff: caring for children of caretakers during a disaster. Pediatrics. 2006;117(Suppl):S446-S447.Google Scholar
7. Wilson, L. Deadly summer of disasters hits budget bottom line. The Australian. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/treasury/deadlysummer-of-disasters-hits-budget-bottom-line/story-fn8gf1nz-1226052870095. Published May 10, 2011. Accessed April 2013.Google Scholar
8. Bureau of Meteorology. Severe Tropical Cyclone Yasi. http://www.bom.gov.au/cyclone/history/yasi.shtml. Accessed April 2013.Google Scholar
9. DiMaggio, C, Markenson, D, Loo, G, Redlener, I. The Willingness of U.S. Emergency Medical Technicians to Respond to Terrorist Incidents. Biosecur Bioterror. 2005;3(4):331-337.Google Scholar
10. Aitken, P, Leggat, P. Considerations in mass casualty and disaster management. In: Blaivas M, ed. Emergency Medicine: An International Perspective. Rijeka, Croatia: Intech Publishing; 1990. http://www.intechopen.com/books/emergency-medicine-an-international-perspective/considerations-in-mass-casualty-and-disaster-management. Accessed April 2013.Google Scholar
Supplementary material: File

Lawlor Supplementary Material

Appendix

Download Lawlor Supplementary Material(File)
File 40.4 KB