Health problems among disaster responders to the 2023 Turkey-Syria earthquake: a cross-sectional study.

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  • Additional Information
    • Source:
      Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 100968543 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1471-227X (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 1471227X NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Emerg Med Subsets: MEDLINE
    • Publication Information:
      Original Publication: London : BioMed Central, [2001-
    • Subject Terms:
      Earthquakes* ; Emergency Responders*/psychology ; Emergency Responders*/statistics & numerical data; Humans ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Male ; Adult ; Female ; Turkey ; Middle Aged ; Surveys and Questionnaires
    • Abstract:
      Objective: The aim of this study was to describe perceived health problems among disaster responders after the earthquake in eastern Turkey/Syria in February 2023.
      Methods: A non-probability cross-sectional study was conducted using an online survey.
      Results: A total of 525 local (18%) and international disaster responders (81%) participated in the study. Of these responders, 46% reported physical or mental health problems during or after their deployment, 15% required medical care during the mission, and 7% required medical evacuation. The most common health problems during the field mission were feeling scared or unsafe, sleeping problems, and headache. After the mission, fatigue, sleeping problems, and feeling depressed were the most frequently reported health problems. The local responders perceived significantly more health problems than did the international responders. Approximately 11% of the participants could not return to their ordinary work after deployment because of infections or mental health issues.
      Conclusions: Physical and mental health problems are commonly perceived by disaster responders and may reduce the effectiveness of disaster response. Raising awareness of health risks among disaster response workers and employers is essential to ensure proper duty of care and should include reparations and medical support during and after disaster response operations.
      Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: The study was approved by the Swedish Ethical Review Authority (refence No. 2023-01369-02). All data were collected without personal identity information. Full written study information was available in the study invitation, and informed consent to participate in the survey was confirmed by the study participants. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
      (© 2024. The Author(s).)
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    • Contributed Indexing:
      Keywords: Disaster; Disaster responder; Disaster response; Duty of care; Health; Mental health problem
    • Publication Date:
      Date Created: 20241201 Date Completed: 20241202 Latest Revision: 20241201
    • Publication Date:
      20241204
    • Accession Number:
      PMC11610220
    • Accession Number:
      10.1186/s12873-024-01143-2
    • Accession Number:
      39617906