emergency preparedness for families with children with special needs
DESCRIPTION
Overview Agency: Kent County Health Department Contact: Chris Buczek Children’s Special Health Care Services Supervisor Population: Families with children with special needs Topic: Emergency and disaster preparedness I chose to work with the Kent County Health Department due to their wide range of services provided. After choosing my population as children with special needs, I arranged to work with Chris Buczek, a nurse who is the supervisor for the Children’s Special Health Care Services and a mother of a son with cerebral palsy. In light of recent storms and power outages at the time of our meeting, I chose to help educate families with children with special needs on the importance of emergency and disaster preparedness planning.TRANSCRIPT
Emergency Preparedness for
Families with Children with Special
NeedsJessica McClusky
Ferris State University
OverviewAgency: Kent County Health DepartmentContact: Chris Buczek
Children’s Special Health Care Services SupervisorPopulation: Families with children with special needsTopic: Emergency and disaster preparedness
DefinitionSpecial Needs
Needing support beyond the average childHaving or at risk for chronic conditions
PhysicalDevelopmentalBehavioralEmotional
DemographicsFrequently dependent on medications and medical equipment
Ventilators, oxygen, feeding pumps, wheelchairsDeteriorate more quickly from lack of equipment and suppliesComplex conditions and comorbidities
Demographics14% of United States children22% of United States householdsIncreasing over time16.1% of boys vs. 11.6% of girlsEqually distributed among income levelsMultiracial children have highest prevalence (18%), Asian children have the lowest (6.3%)Michigan:
15.4% of Michigan childrenHighest prevalence below poverty level (19.1%)
Learning NeedsPreparedness leads to better health outcomesPersonal interviews revealed reluctance to utilize large emergency planning packetsFamilies never considered the impact of a disaster situation
Behavioral ObjectivesThe target population will describe the need for an emergency or disaster plan for their familyThe target population will complete the provided emergency preparedness tool and discuss their plan as a familyThe target population will describe additional resources to access if needed for further preparedness needs
Care Model FrameworkThe Logic Model
Sync program objectives and outcomesEvaluate successesDetermine areas of improvementEnhance communication and collaboration
Intervention:Emergency Preparedness Planning Tool
1 page planning toolIntended to hang in prominent area in home
1 page educational summaryIntended to quickly discuss the who, what, where, when, why, and how of disaster planning
DistributionSocial Media
Facebook group for families with children with special needs300 members
Children’s Special Health Care Services e-mail list2,000 members
Kent County Community Wellness NursesKent County Health Department disaster preparedness coordinator
Unique Program TailorsConsideration of unique population needs
What is vital to these families?Varying education levels
Tool written below a 6th grade reading level
EvaluationFeedback received from:
Community Wellness NursesFamilies of children with special needs
Through Facebook and support groupChildren’s Special Health Care Services supervisor
EvaluationPositive feedback:
Length, easy to use, quick to fill out, visually appealing, eye catching, contains areas for necessary information
Areas for improvement:Room for more medications, include areas for parent phone number/address if different than child
ConclusionSmall tool, big impactPersonal thoughts
ReferencesAmerican Academy of Pediatrics. (2010). Emergency information forms and emergency preparedness for children with special health care needs. Pediatrics, 125, 829. doi: 10.1542/peds.2010-0186Curley, A. L. & Vitale, P. A. (Eds.). (2011). Population-based nursing: Concepts and competencies for advanced practice. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company.Dubose, C. (2011). The social media revolution. Radiologic Technology, 83(2), 112-119. Murray, J. S. (2011). Disaster preparedness for children with special healthcare needs and disabilities. Pediatric Nursing, 16, 226-232.Owens, J. K., Stidham, A. W., & Owens, E. L. (2013). Disaster evacuation for persons with special needs: A content analysis of information on YouTube. Applied Nursing Research, 26, 273-275.Safeer, R. S. & Keenan, J. (2005). Health literacy: The gap between physicians and patients. American Family Physician, 72(3), 463-468. United States Department of Health and Human Services. (2008). National survey of children with special health care needs. Retrieved from http://mchb.hrsa.gov/cshcn05/