Mexico City Emergency Nurses Respond After September 2017 Earthquake

• Published in: Journal of emergency nursing Vol. 44; no. 2; pp. 200 - 202
• Main Author: Jasso Ortega, Gerardo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Limited 01-03-2018
• Subjects: Disaster Planning; Earthquakes; Emergency medical care; Emergency Nursing; Emergency preparedness; Emergency Service, Hospital - organization & administration; Emergency services; Humans; Mexico; Nurses; Nursing; Nursing care; Social networks; Wounds and Injuries - nursing; Mexico; Mexico City Mexico
• ISSN: 0099-1767; 1527-2966
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jen.2018.01.005

[...]many patients took themselves to the emergency department, without any forewarning.Because of interruptions to telephone systems, there was limited communication among hospitals in and around Mexico City and no means for hospital coordination and prioritization of ambulance transfers of patients.Nearly 90% of hospitals in the declared disaster area reported experiencing substantial challenges in responding to the emergency, according to a recent report from Mexico's National Center for Prevention of Disasters (CENAPRED).1 Echoing many of the issues faced in previous natural disasters, “These challenges represented a range of interrelated problems from infrastructure breakdowns, such as electrical and communication failures, to community collaboration issues over resources, such as transportation, hospital beds, and public shelters.”[...]having emergency nurses become health care disaster certified expands and integrates the influence of emergency nursing into local, regional and national disaster management operations. 1 Central Mexico earthquake kills more than 200, topples building 2 Why Mexico is so prone to strong earthquakes 3