Disaster medicine and public health preparedness are commonly perceived as subfields of the larger fields of medicine and public health rather than being recognized as an emerging academic field embracing all of the disciplines that contribute to effective disaster response. As such, they serve as appropriate subjects for multidisciplinary work in the social sciences, whether it is a sociologic...

It’s been 1 year since the American Medical Association closed the Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health and stopped supporting its preparedness and response programs. To ensure the continuation and potential growth of these programs as vital components of the evolving discipline of disaster medicine and public health, 2 major transitions were undertaken. The first was to revise the Na...

BACKGROUND At 14:48 on 12 May 2008 an earthquake of magnitude 8.0 struck the Wenchuan area of Sichuan province, China. A decision to offer/receive UK medical assistance was agreed at a Sino/British political level and a medical team was despatched to the earthquake area. METHODS This study describes the team's experience during the immediate aftermath of the earthquake and the following 18 mo...

Abbreviations: ALNAP = Active Learning Network on Accountability and Performance APCDM = Asia-Pacific Conference on Disaster Medicine CDC = Center for Disease Control and Prevention [U.S.] CIDA = Canada International Development Agency CRED = Centre for Research of the Epidemiology of Disasters GDIN = Global Disaster Information Network HINAP = Health Information System for Advance Planning ICR...

so the community can be better prepared to act when disaster strikes. The authors highlight the paucity of research in the area of disaster medicine, and describe it as a "vital function" in the preparation for an adequate response from the medical community. They provide readers with a practical outline for carrying out disaster research and discuss issues including developing a research proto...

We usually associate triage with the Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment method, but much of its origin is still unknown. Therefore, French studies and the origin of triage shown in domestic and foreign published works have been investigated and its significance reaffirmed. The etymology of the word "triage" means "to break into three pieces." It was suggested by a literature review that the rise...

Using historical and research examples of disaster and crisis science, I argue here for the professionalization of disaster medicine and public health as a unique and essential discipline in support of global public health security. Questions about clinical competencies of providers and reports of unacceptable practices and the limited scope of guidelines for foreign medical teams have persiste...

For more than a decade, emergency medicine (EM) organizations have produced guidelines, training, and leadership for disaster management. However, to date there have been limited guidelines for emergency physicians (EPs) needing to provide a rapid response to a surge in demand. The aim of this project was to identify strategies that may guide surge management in the emergency department (ED). A...