Nursing in the emergency department (ED) during a disaster: A review of the current literature

SummaryBackgroundThe aim of this review was to explore the current literature about working as a nurse in the emergency department (ED) during a disaster. Nurses play an important role in caring for patients that present to the ED following a disaster. While there is a great deal of literature written about disasters and disaster response, little has been written from the emergency nursing perspective.MethodsLiterature was identified through electronic databases from 2000 to 2011. Articles were reviewed if they provided discussion relevant to nursing in the ED during a disaster.Results18 articles met the criteria. Five themes emerged from the review. There were two key findings: changes from a ‘normal’ working day to a disaster; and the preparedness of nurses working in the ED during a disaster.ConclusionsThe literature highlights concern about the preparedness of ED nurses for disaster response and the capacity of nurses to transition to working in a disaster situation.