Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gxg78 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-21T13:53:09.608Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Implication of Burn Disaster Planning and Management: Coverage and Accessibility of Burn Centers in Belgium

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 October 2019

Mustafa Al-Shamsi  and
Serge Jennes
Mustafa Al-Shamsi*
Affiliation:
Institute of Health and Society, Université catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium Unit for Research in Emergency and Disaster, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
Serge Jennes
Affiliation:
Burn Wound Centers of Loverval and Brussels (IMTR Loverval, Centre des brûlés), Charleroi, Belgium
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Mustafa Al-Shamsi, School of Public Health, Université catholique de Louvain, Clos Chapelle-aux-Champs, Bte B1.30.15, 1200, Brussels, Belgium (e-mail: mustafatalibb@yahoo.com).
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Introduction:

Burn disasters represent a real challenge to burn centers worldwide. Several burn disasters with a considerable number of casualties happened in Belgium in the past. The positioning of burn centers is a significant issue to account for in a burn disaster preparedness and response. The objectives of this study are to identify the geographic coverage and accessibility of the burn centers in Belgium in the realm of a burn disaster scenario.

Method:

Cross-sectional secondary analysis was performed using data from the Belgian Burn Association and Belgian Department of the Statistic. Data were analyzed using ArcGIS, a geographic information system tool to identify the coverage of burn centers within half an hour driving time, and access time of both populations in the districts and the disaster-prone areas to the individual burn centers.

Results:

Around 7.3 million (65%) people are covered by a half an hour driving time window from the burn centers. However, the accessibility to the individual burn centers is varied across different regions and provinces.

Conclusion:

There is a slightly over-supply of burn centers in the mid part of the country, contrasted by an under-supply and poor accessibility for the population living near the borders, particularly in the south part of the country. This study would provide a benchmark for stakeholders in Belgium and other industrial countries to consider the coverage and accessibility of the burn centers as part of preparation and planning for burn disasters in the future.

Keywords

accessibilityBelgiumburn disastercoverageplanning
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 14 , Issue 6 , December 2020 , pp. 694 - 704
Copyright
Copyright © 2019 Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc.

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Committee on Trauma, American College of Surgeons. Advanced Trauma Life Support Program for Physicians. Chicago, IL: American College of Surgeons; 1997.Google Scholar
Mortelmans, LJ, Van Boxstael, S, De Cauwer, HG, et al. Preparedness of Belgian civil hospitals for chemical, biological, radiation, and nuclear incidents: are we there yet. Eur J Emerg Med. 2014;21(4):296‐300.10.1097/MEJ.0000000000000072CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Saffle, JR. The 1942 fire at Boston’s Cocoanut Grove nightclub. Am J Surg. 1993;166:581‐591.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cassuto, J, Tarnow, P. The discotheque fire in Gothenburg 1998. A tragedy among teenagers. Burns 2003;29:405‐416.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Klein, MB, Kramer, CB, Nelson, J, et al. Geographic access to burn center hospitals. JAMA. 2009;302(16):1774‐1781.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kaiser, R, Spiegel, PB, Henderson, AK, et al. The application of geographic information systems and global positioning systems in humanitarian emergencies: lessons learned, programme implications and future research. Disasters. 2003;27(2):127‐140.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Arc GIS online and pro. https://www.esri.com. Accessed September 14, 2019.Google Scholar
Branas, CC, MacKenzie, EJ, ReVelle, CS. A trauma resource allocation model for ambulances and hospitals. Health Serv Res. 2000;35(2):489.Google ScholarPubMed
Branas, C. No Time to Spare: Improving Access to Trauma Care. Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics. 2005. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/3158/ca8044ef397a6f01b9af93c923bd0d1b1224.pdf. Accessed September 14, 2019.Google Scholar
Kolesar, P, Walker, W, Hausner, J. Determining the relation between fire engine travel times and travel distances in New York City. Oper Res. 1975;23:614‐627.10.1287/opre.23.4.614CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Welling, L, Van Harten, SM, Patka, P, et al. The café fire on New Year’s Eve in Volendam, the Netherlands: description of events. Burns. 2005;31(5):548‐555.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cairns, BA, Stiffler, A, Price, F, et al. Managing a combined burn trauma disaster in the post-9/11 world: lessons learned from the 2003 West Pharmaceutical plant explosion. J Burn Care Rehabil. 2005;26(2):144‐150.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Harrington, DT, Biffl, WL, Cioffi, WG. The station nightclub fire. J Burn Care Rehabil. 2005;26(2):141‐143.10.1097/01.BCR.0000155537.60909.FCCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
German burn association/ Deutsche Gessellschaft für Verbrennungsmedizin. https://www.verbrennungsmedizin.de/ Accessed September 14, 2019.Google Scholar
Bargues, L, Fall, MM. Afflux massif de brûlés: la doctrine française de triage en temps de paix. Ann Burns Fire Disasters. 2015;28(1):50‐56.Google Scholar
Potin, M, Sénéchaud, C, Carsin, H, et al. Mass casualty incidents with multiple burn victims: rationale for a Swiss burn plan. Burns. 2010;36(6):741‐750.10.1016/j.burns.2009.12.003CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Branas, CC, MacKenzie, EJ, Williams, JC, et al. (2005). Access to trauma centers in the United States. JAMA. 293(21), 2626‐2633.10.1001/jama.293.21.2626CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kearns, RD, Hubble, MW, Holmes, JH IV, et al. Disaster planning: transportation resources and considerations for managing a burn disaster. J Burn Care Res. 2014;35(1):e21‐e32.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pirson, J, Degrave, E. Aeromedical transfer to Belgium of severely burned patients during the initial days following the Volendam fire. Mil Med. 2003;168(5):360‐363.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Goss, J. Ambulance strike teams. New concept tested in Southern California firestorms. JEMS 2004;29:54‐61.Google ScholarPubMed
Diaz, MA, Hendey, GW, Bivins, HG. When is the helicopter faster? A comparison of helicopter and ground ambulance transport times. J Trauma Acute Care Surg. 2005;58(1):148‐153.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sheridan, R, Weber, J, Prelack, K, et al. Early burn center transfer shortens the length of hospitalization and reduces complications in children with serious burn injuries. J Burn Care Rehabil. 1999;20(5):347‐350.10.1097/00004630-199909000-00002CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Branas, C, ReVelle, CS, Mackenzie, EJ. To the rescue: optimally locating trauma hospitals and helicopters. LDI Issue Brief. 2000;6:1‐4.Google ScholarPubMed