Conceptual framework for culturally sensitive public health nursing under disasters

Abstract

A number of global standards have been published against at frequent disaster around the world. It is said that culturally sensitive public health nursing is necessary in order to adjust the global standards of disaster nursing efficiently to each affected area. These are still tacit knowledge hence we have been studying to clarify them to share with nurses all over the world.

The aim of this review is to describe the conceptual framework for culturally sensitive public health nursing under disasters. We analyzed the definitions and views about disasters, culture and nursing in the literatures.

Firstly, disaster is defined as following; ‘The condition in which people are not be able to keep their lifestyle to meet their basic needs without external assistance, because people and their environment are damaged by natural or human-made incident and their community does not function’.

Next, we defined culture as ‘the pattern of thought, attitude, behavior based on the view of the world including disaster, values, belief and norms which people in the certain area have acquired, stock, share and inherited. Those guide our thought, decision and behavior and form the personality and the meaning of our existence.

Lastly, public health nursing under disasters is defined as following; nursing activity aiming at maintenance and reconstruction of just and safe society in cooperation with people and communities so that they can improve the circumstance, including life style and policies, reducing gaps from normal in order to prevent diseases and impairments, maintain and recover health condition and realize peaceful death, throughout the disaster periods.

In addition to above, outcomes and considerations of culturally sensitive public health nursing under disaster are shown. The outcome could be comfort as nursing outcome, prevention of identity crisis and efficient activities utilizing the wisdom of affected people. Considerations are awareness of public health nurses' own culture and culturally safe procedure.