Within out-of-hospital emergencies, primary health care (PHC) nurses must face life-threatening emergencies (LTEs), which are defined as “a situation associated with an imminent life risk that entails the start-up of resources and special means to resolve the situation.”

The objectives of this study were to know the training received for out-of-hospital LTEs by PHC nurses of Asturias, Spain and the perception they have about their theoretical knowledge and practical skills in a series of emergency procedures or techniques used in LTE emergencies; as well as to analyze the differences according to the geographical area of their work.

Cross-sectional, descriptive, and observational study was conducted in 2018 of a sample of PHC service nurses of Asturias, Spain.

A total of 236 nurses from PHC service centers of Asturias, Spain, from among the total of 730 nurses who make up the staff of nurses of the PHC service of Asturias, between April and May 2018, were surveyed. The survey was designed ad hoc using the Doctrinal Body of Emergency Nursing (DBEN) proposed by the Spanish Society of Emergency Medicine (SEMES; Madrid, Spain), which indicates the theoretical and practical procedures that must be acquired by the PHC nurses. It is composed of 37 procedures or techniques employed in LTEs using an 11-point Likert scale rating to detect their self-perception about theoretical knowledge and practical skills from zero (“Minimum”) to ten (“Maximum”).

There were significant differences in the mean of theoretical knowledge and practical skills in many procedures or techniques studied, depending on the different areas of work.

All PHC nurses must be perfectly trained to provide initial quality assistance to the LTE, with both theoretical and practical knowledge of the different techniques, so that it can continue to be attended by the corresponding Emergency Service.

The Richter Scale measures the magnitude of a seismic occurrence, but it does not feasibly quantify the magnitude of the “disaster” at the point of impact in real humanitarian needs, based on United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR; Geneva, Switzerland) 2009 Disaster Terminology. A Disaster Severity Index (DSI) similar to the Richter Scale and the Mercalli Scale has been formulated; this will quantify needs, holistically and objectively, in the hands of any stakeholders and even across timelines.

An agreed terminology in quantifying “disaster” matters; inconsistency in measuring it by stakeholders posed a challenge globally in formulating legislation and policies responding to it.

A quantitative, mathematical calculation which uses the median score percentage of 100% as a baseline, indicating the ability to cope within the local capacity, was used. Seventeen indicators were selected based on the UNISDR 2009 disaster definition of vulnerability and exposure and holistic approach as a pre-condition. The severity of the disaster is defined as the level of unmet needs. Thirty natural disasters were tested, retrospectively, and non-parametric tests were used to test the correlation of the DSI score against the indicators.

The findings showed that 20 out of 30 natural disasters tested fulfilled the inability to cope, within local capacity in disaster terminology. Non-parametric tests showed that there was a correlation between the 30 DSI scored and the indicators.

By computing a median fit percentage score of 100% as the ability to cope, and the correlation of the 17 indicators, in this DSI Scale, 20 natural disasters fitted into the disaster definition. This DSI will enable humanitarian stakeholders to measure and compare the severity of the disaster objectively, as well as enable future response to be based on needs.

YewYY, Castro DelgadoR, HeslopDJ, Arcos GonzálezP. The Yew Disaster Severity Index: A New Tool in Disaster Metrics. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2019;34(1):8–19.

The goal of this study was to find out the training received in Urgent and Emergency Medicine (UEM) by the Primary Health Care (PHC) physicians of Asturias (Spain), as well as their perception of their own theoretical knowledge and practical skills in a series of procedures employed in life-threatening emergencies (LTEs), and also to analyze the differences according to the geographical area of their work.

This was a cross-sectional survey of PHC physicians using an ad hoc survey of a sample of 213 physicians in Asturias regarding their self-perception of theoretical knowledge and practical skills in techniques used in LTEs by areas of work (rural, suburban, and urban). The interview was conducted by mail from April through May 2017. The data processing has used absolute and relative frequencies, as well as central tendency parameters and dispersion parameters. The estimates for the entire population have been made using confidence intervals for the mean of 95%. In the comparison of parameters, the differences between parameters with a probability of error less than five percent (P<.05) have been considered significant. For the comparison of means between the different techniques in the different areas of work, ANOVA was used.

With respect to the training of physicians, in general, for managing emergencies, both at the regional level and by areas of work (rural, suburban, and urban), none of the sets analyzed attained five points. By areas of work, it was the suburban region where there was a greater average general level of knowledge. There were significant differences in the average theoretical knowledge and the average practical skills in the procedures studied according to the different areas of work. The greater number of significant differences was between the urban and suburban regions and within the urban area.

It’s necessary to ensure an adequate homogeneity of the levels of theoretical knowledge and practical skills of PHC physicians in order to guarantee the equity of provision of health care in emergencies in different geographical areas.

Cernuda MartínezJA, Castro DelgadoR, Ferrero FernándezE, Arcos GonzálezP. Self-Perception of Theoretical Knowledge and Practical Skills by Primary Health Care Physicians in Life-Threatening Emergencies. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2018;33(5):508–518.