Context for Practice: Nurses understand the various types of natural and human-caused disasters, the range of public health emergencies, and their role in responding to those events. Nurses co-design and implement interventions that protect public health. Nurses in formal and informal leadership roles support nurses and interprofessional teams in disaster-related and public health emergency preparedness.
| Ethical Responsibilities: Nurses support individuals, groups and communities before, during and after disaster-related and public health emergencies by |
| 5.4.1 |
educating themselves and others about the range of natural disasters (e.g., floods, earthquakes, landslides, wildfires), other human-caused disasters (e.g., civil unrest, humanitarian crises, acts of terrorism, gun-related violence, mass casualties), and the range of public health emergencies (e.g., infectious disease outbreaks requiring mass vaccination, pandemics, chemical, biological, and nuclear incidents) and their role surrounding such situations; |
| 5.4.2 |
becoming informed about the health inequities and disproportionate impact that disasters and public health emergencies have on vulnerable populations (e.g., children, older adults, women, Indigenous communities, Black, racialized and other equity-deserving populations) and on people with varying abilities/disabilities; |
| 5.4.3 |
balancing their professional duties, personal health and obligations; |
| 5.4.4 |
planning ahead to make ethical decisions during emergencies or pandemics; |
| 5.4.5 |
providing direct care and interventions (e.g., first aid, advanced clinical care, lifesaving interventions, immunization, resource allocation, ongoing monitoring and addressing social needs) in collaboration with other members of the health-care team while following safety precautions established by the employer, union, regulatory/professional body and/or government; |
| 5.4.6 |
reflecting on the risk of not providing care to the client, assessing whether the interventions are directly relevant to preventing harm, whether the care will notably prevent harm, and whether the benefits of nursing interventions outweigh the potential harm and that the risk to their personal safety is acceptable; |
| 5.4.7 |
supporting health promotion and public health activities to protect the health, safety and survival of all people and implementing interventions to safeguard public health; |
| 5.4.8 |
collaborating with others to adjust priorities and reduce harm when resources are limited and safe care cannot be provided; |
| 5.4.9 |
informing clients about proposed plans and informing employers about potential threats to the safety of delivery of care during times of limited resources; and |
| 5.4.10 |
using and/or advocating for the use of the least restrictive measures possible in situations when a community health intervention interferes with the individual rights of people. |
In addition, nurses in formal or informal leadership (e.g., administration, clinical care, education, policy and research) roles support nurses in disaster-related and public health emergency preparedness by
| 5.4.11 |
working toward meeting the gaps in disaster and public health emergency preparedness to support nursing students and nurses in practice with basic and ongoing education and training about how to respond to such events to meet the needs of diverse and high-vulnerability populations; |
| 5.4.12 |
advocating for and working with others to create policies and processes to ensure a safe workplace (e.g., adequate supplies, additional staffing, changes in clinical duties,) for nurses during a disaster and/or public emergency response; |
| 5.4.13 |
developing and updating organizational disaster response or recovery plans that address the provision of support for those carrying the physical and moral burden of care (e.g., unreasonable burden); |
| 5.4.14 |
providing support and guidance (e.g., mental health support, resources) for nurses to meet emerging health-care needs; |
| 5.4.15 |
supporting nurses in balancing their duty to provide care with their personal health and safety; |
| 5.4.16 |
providing ethical and decision-making guidance to nurses facing conflicting ethical situations related to disasters (e.g., triage principles, critical resource allocations during limited supply, business continuity plans) or public health emergencies (e.g., fair allocation of mechanical ventilators) causing moral distress. |