An emergency occurs when a urgent situation takes place that can be detrimental to a person’s life. Emergencies are not a common occurrence; however do arise on occasion. The response and outcome of emergencies can be positively amplified with an organized plan or preparedness technique. In “The Neighborhood” community, there was an emergency, forest fires, which left the residents to experience unfortunate residual respiratory effects. The many that suffered include patients and staff in the hospital, senior center, school, and the Bley household.
According to the community news in “The Neighborhood,” there have been forest fires “for over five days, while unable to contain.” The fire has been destroying the land for five days and is quite difficult to extinguish. There are many disadvantages to forest fires such as damaging the land, producing air pollution, and exacerbating respiratory distress in patients. “The smokey air conditions affect everyone but especially those with pre-existing lung problems such as chronic lung conditions.” The forest fires are creating stress on the hospital. There is an alarming increase in emergency room visits due to patients experiencing respiratory distress. The emergency department is requesting beds on the medical-surgical floor to admit patients, “but none are available, so there is pressure to get patients discharged.” It is distressing to the staff working on the medical-surgical floor because they are “kept very busy admitting new patients as soon as others are discharged.” Some nurses were even forced to work over-time to provide adequate staff coverage to meet the increasing client numbers.
The problems produced from the forest fire continue in the senior center and the school. The individuals in the senior center go in and out, and “needed to use oxygen more often this week.” After the forest fire, the air is unsafe to breath and causing difficulty with breathing. Ms. Williams, the geriatric nurse at the senior center, “advises the members to stay indoors to avoid respiratory irritants.” The geriatric population due to their vulnerability is more likely at risk to develop respiratory complications. In the school where Ms. Brinkworth works as a school nurse dealt with effects of the fire. She had to call a second grader’s parent to take the child to see the doctor due to increasing signs and symptoms of respiratory distress. The child did not have an inhaler to decrease wheezing and the parent was advised to retain one in the school for future needs.
In “The Neighborhood,” the Bley household is being kept indoors due to the unclean air created by the forest fire. It is healthier that Mr. and Mrs. Bley remain in their home to prevent harmful effects on their lungs. Mr. Bley already suffers from emphysema and is a smoker. He knows that it is wiser to stay indoors because he will immediately have trouble breathing if he went outside. The geriatric population due to ageism and medical conditions are more likely at risk to develop respiratory complications.
The role that the public health care teams took in the emergency preparedness in “The Neighborhood” was attending to the individuals that needed medical attention. All of the nurses initially responded to the emergency and provided immediate care. In the hospital, the nurses worked rigorously to admit patients as quickly as a bed was available. The nurses expeditiously discharged and transferred patients to make room for patients who required admission and medical treatment. In the senior center, Ms. Williams attended to the individuals and encouraged them to remain indoors to protect their own health. Prevention of exposure is the best technique in emergency preparedness. In the school, Ms. Brinkworth had immediately contacted the parent of the second grader who required further evaluation by a doctor for increasing respiratory distress. The community health nurses should also monitor the effects of the emergency. There are many households such as the Bleys’ who remained indoors and should be assessed for any health complications.
The local, state, and national agencies are valuable resources that could participate in the response to this emergency. The New York City Fire Department (FDNY) is responsible for handling fires and ensuring safety. They are the priority responders who have a challenging profession of fighting fires. The New York City Fire Department have a variety of roles which include: “extinguishing fires, attending to medical emergencies, investigating fires for potential arson, conduct fire code regulatory inspections, and have fire safety events” (New York City Fire Department, 2011). The New York City Fire Department assists many communities during emergencies. The department makes an effort to hold fire safety events to encourage fire safety awareness and tips about prevention. During daylight savings time, which occurs twice a year, New Yorkers’ are to replace the batteries in the smoke detectors in the home with fresh batteries.
Fire is not just a local emergency; it is also looked upon by the state and nation because such a situation can compromise the safety of individuals. The vision of the state and national agencies is to protect the residents to their best ability from disasters. According to The New York State Department of Health, “most fires occur in the home” (New York State Department of Health, 2010). The New York State Department of Health offers residents educational materials on how to begin with prevention starting with your house. They provide tips on how to prevent fires in the home as well as formulating an escape plan. It is beneficial to have practice fire drills in the home in preparation for an emergency. The National Fire Protection association serves the nation in fire safety awareness and prevention. The information is free and the knowledge is life-saving.
Public health care teams can enhance the citizens’ preparedness for community emergencies. One way is to have health fairs that teach the community about fire prevention and safety measures. Health fairs are a fun and entertaining way to share knowledge to people of all ages. There are agencies such as the Visiting Nurse Service of New York, which is a “non-profit organization that provides in-home nursing care to New Yorkers of all ages” (Visiting Nurse Service of New York, 2012). The participation of the Visiting Nurse Service of New York agency is advantageous. The agency would send its staff to assess the elderly in their homes. Assessment is the first step of the nursing process to promote safety. The nurses can assist the elderly in preparing for emergencies and demonstrating how they would be able to seek assistance. The Visiting Nurse Service of New York would be ideal in assisting the Bley household. A nurse would arrive to the Bley home and make sure they were stable and not suffering any complications from the fire. The Bley household would be provided with the necessary medical care at their convenience without them having to step out of their house.
Fires are dangerous emergency and can be life threatening to any community. Sometimes there are warning signs of a fire if a fire alarm is existent. In such conditions, there would be adequate time permitted to evacuate the premise. Not all emergency situations with fires give warning signals. Suggestions to enhance personal preparedness for this type of emergency would be to have a functioning fire alarm in the house. The batteries should be changed as needed and it should be tested to make sure that it is working. Having an emergency kit available is also beneficial for any situation. In case of fires, an evacuation plan is vital for a safe method of escaping away from the area of harm. Practicing evacuation methods with the family is fun and it is a valuable lesson for any age. In schools, children are taught to stop, drop, and roll in case of a fire which can also be used at home. Fire extinguishers should be kept in every home. Fire extinguishers can dissolve small fires and can prevent it from becoming a larger fire. Preparation is the key for prevention.

References
National Fire Protection Association. (2012). Safety Information. Retrieved from http://www.nfpa.org/categoryList.asp?categoryID=1491&URL=Safety%20Information
New York City Fire Department. (2011). Mission Statement of the New York City Fire Department. Retrieved from http://www.nyc.gov/html/fdny/html/general/mission.shtml
New York State Department of Health. (2010). Home Fire Prevention, Children Ages Birth to Four Years. Retrieved from http://www.health.ny.gov/prevention/injury_prevention/children/fact_sheets/birth-4_years/home_fire_prevention_birth-4_years.htm
The Neighborhood- Pearson Health Science. The Neighborhood News. December 24, 2009
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http://pearsonneighborhood.ecollege.com/re/DotNextLaunch.asp?courseid=3609454
Visiting Nurse Service of New York. (2012). Community. Retrieved from http://www.vnsny.org/community/