Barriers to at-home-preparedness in public health employees: implications for disaster preparedness training.
OBJECTIVE
To assess "at-home" preparedness and barriers to preparedness in a cohort of public health employees.


METHODS
Conducted a cross-sectional survey involving 100 employees attending emergency preparedness training that emphasized incident command training and included a segment on "at-home" preparedness.


RESULTS
Fifteen percent of participants were rated as "better prepared," and only 8% of participants would be considered "most prepared." There was no relationship between the concern for bioterrorism and other disasters and preparedness. The principal barrier involved challenges in getting the task done versus lack of desire or knowledge.


CONCLUSIONS
There is great potential for distraction of public health workers during an emergent event if they are not prepared at home and have concern for family members. At-home preparedness training efforts that emphasize what should be done and why are likely to have limited impact on changing behavior. Strategies that ensure that small steps are taken are likely to be more successful.
Blessman
James
J
Wayne State University, Department of Family and Community Health Sciences, Detroit, MI, USA. jambles@med.wayne.edu
Skupski
James
J
Jamil
Mada
M
Jamil
Hikmet
H
Bassett
David
D
Wabeke
Roger
R
Arnetz
Bengt
B
D000328:Adult; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003162:Competency-Based Education; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004189:Disaster Planning / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004190:Disasters; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000193:education; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008824:Michigan; D008875:Middle Aged; D020380:Needs Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011634:Public Health