Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-2pzkn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-27T20:50:33.959Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Health System Response and Adaptation to the Largest Sandstorm in the Middle East

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 August 2016

Furqan B. Irfan ,
Sameer A. Pathan ,
Zain A. Bhutta ,
Mohamed E. Abbasy ,
Amr Elmoheen ,
Abdallah M. Elsaeidy ,
Tooba Tariq ,
Charles D. Hugelmeyer ,
Habib Dardouri  and
Noor Bibi Khial Bad Shah
...Show all authors
Furqan B. Irfan
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Sameer A. Pathan
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Zain A. Bhutta*
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Mohamed E. Abbasy
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Amr Elmoheen
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Abdallah M. Elsaeidy
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Tooba Tariq
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Charles D. Hugelmeyer
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Habib Dardouri
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Noor Bibi Khial Bad Shah
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Colene Y. Daniel
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Ashwin D. Silva
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Kaleelullah S. Farook
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Yogdutt Sharma
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Stephen H. Thomas
Affiliation:
Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Zain A. Bhutta, MBBS, Department of Emergency Medicine, Hamad General Hospital, Hamad Medical Corporation, Bin Omran, Off Al-Rayyan Road, PO Box 3050, Doha, Qatar (e-mail: ZBhutta@hamad.qa).
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The State of Qatar experienced a sandstorm on the night of April 1, 2015, lasting approximately 12 hours, with winds of more than 100 km/h and average particulate matter of approximately 10 μm in diameter. The emergency department (ED) of the main tertiary hospital in Qatar managed 62% of the total emergency calls and those of higher triage order. The peak load of patients during the event manifested approximately 6 hours after the onset. The Major Emergency Command Centre of the hospital ensured the department was maximally organized in terms of disaster management, and established protocols were brought into action. Multiple timely meetings were convened in efforts to effectively execute plans that included rapid emergency medical services handover time, resourcing staff, maximizing bed space, preventing dust entry in the ED, bypassing certain administrative processes, canceling day-surgeries that did not affect inpatient morbidity, and procuring additional respiratory equipment. Patients arrived mainly with exacerbations of asthma and respiratory distress, ophthalmic emergencies, and vehicular trauma; surprisingly, the incidence of pedestrian injuries did not vary. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2017;11:227–238)

Keywords

sandstormemergencyrespiratorydisaster managementQatar
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 11 , Issue 2 , April 2017 , pp. 227 - 238
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2016 

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

1. Gupta, P, Singh, S, Kumar, S, et al. Effect of dust aerosol in patients with asthma. J Asthma Off J Assoc Care Asthma. 2012;49(2):134-138. http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/02770903.2011.645180.Google ScholarPubMed
2. Graveris, HA. Desert Enviromental Handbook. Yuma, Arizona: Yuma Proving Ground; 1977.Google Scholar
3. Avduevskij, VS, Kuznecov, VA. Reliability and Effectiveness in the Technology.Handbook. Vol 10. Moscow: Machinostroenie; 1990.Google Scholar
4. Dobrzhinsky, N. Characterization of desert road dust aerosol from provinces of Afghanistan and Iraq. Aerosol Air Qual Res. 2012;12(6):1209-1216. http://www.aaqr.org/Doi.php?id=17_AAQR-12-05-OA-0112&v=12&i=6&m=12&y=2012. 10.4209/aaqr.2012.05.0112. Accessed June 20, 2015.Google Scholar
5. Kearns, RD, Conlon, KM, Valenta, AL, et al. Disaster planning: the basics of creating a burn mass casualty disaster plan for a burn center. J Burn Care Res. 2014;35(1):e1-e13. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/BCR.0b013e31829afe25.Google Scholar
6. Stander, M, Wallis, LA, Smith, WP. Hospital disaster planning in the Western cape, South Africa. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2011;26(4):283-288. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1049023X11006571.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7. Eastman, AL, Rinnert, KJ, Nemeth, IR, et al. Alternate site surge capacity in times of public health disaster maintains trauma center and emergency department integrity: hurricane Katrina. J Trauma. 2007;63(2):253-257. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/TA.0b013e3180d0a70e.Google Scholar
8. Kaji, AH, Langford, V, Lewis, RJ. Assessing hospital disaster preparedness: a comparison of an on-site survey, directly observed drill performance, and video analysis of teamwork. Ann Emerg Med. 2008;52(3):195-201, 201.e1–12. 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2007.10.026.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
9. Little, M, Cooper, J, Gope, M, et al. “Lessons learned”: a comparative case study analysis of an emergency department response to two burns disasters. Emerg Med Australas EMA. 2012;24(4):420-429. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1742-6723.2012.01578.x.Google Scholar