I came across this article, The Role of Nurses in Disaster Preparedness and Response, and I am so glad that I did.

I am sharing this with you because nurses pay an integral part in disaster preparedness and response. Sadly, we tend to focus less on the preparedness side which is what I want to talk about briefly.

Responding to disasters is sexy. Let’s just be honest. If I told you the things I did on disasters, your mouth would salivate. I am blessed to have been able to respond to numerous disasters and make an impact.

However, what if we invested more in preparedness so the impact of the disaster won’t be as intense? I posted the other day on knowing who your neighbor is and being considerate of their needs, especially during a disaster where evacuation orders have been given.

What if we made a conscious effort to promote public health and disaster preparedness efforts? I remember volunteering at an event and we were handing our containers, for free, that had everything a person would need to prepare for disasters including flashlights, batteries, matches, to name a few things.

It was so impossible to get people engaged in a conversation about preparedness let alone trying to give them away for FREE!

What is it about disasters that make people think that it won’t happen to them, or that someone will SAVE them after the disaster has hit? We have sadly seen the devastation and loss after disasters and that includes people that did all they could to prepare.

My call to action is for us all to pay more attention to preparedness efforts, not just in our homes, but in our communities as well.

Do you have a public health initiative that you have implemented in your community? I want to hear about it! Connect with me and share what YOU are doing to be proactive instead of reactive.

#adventureswithnursejamla