Comprising the largest group of health care professionals, nurses play a great role and assume many responsibilities during disaster periods, when the public needs health care services the most. The aim of this study was to reveal the experiences of nurses assigned to the disaster area during relief efforts after the February 6, 2023 earthquakes in Türkiye.

This qualitative and descriptive study used the maximum variation sampling method, one of the purposive sampling methods, and was completed with 20 nurses. Data were analyzed using inductive content analysis.

Four main themes emerged from the experiences of the nurses who provided health care services in the disaster area: experiences related to pre-mission processes, experiences during the mission, post-mission experiences, and recommendations for disaster preparedness.

Nurses’ experiences and suggestions revealed in this study may inform future disaster preparedness and disaster management plans, and this study’s results point to the need for the development of professional nursing skills in disaster management.

Disaster risk reduction measures are now being developed based on social vulnerability. This study aimed to identify socially vulnerable areas to disasters in Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran.

The research utilized a mixed method approach conducted in 2 stages. First, a vulnerability index was created using 8 sub-indices, and the value of the index was calculated for each of the 91 rural districts in the study area. In the second stage, spatial analysis using Anselin’s Local Moran’s I was performed to identify the most vulnerable districts.

Results indicated that 40 of 91 districts, covering 49% of the total area, had high social vulnerability to disasters. Anselin’s Local Moran’s I analysis identified 2 high-high clusters consisting of 5 districts. The study also found that areas with higher social vulnerability were more susceptible to natural hazards such as floods and earthquakes.

Nearly half of the studied areas exhibited a high level of social vulnerability and were at risk of natural disasters. Implementing general measures to improve the socio-economic status of the population, such as increasing education and income levels, along with specific actions like assisting vulnerable populations in relocating to safer areas, can help mitigate disaster risks.

Breastfeeding assumes critical importance in the aftermath of disasters such as earthquakes, as it provides all the essential nutrients required by infants, enhances their immune systems, and mitigates the risks associated with using contaminated water for formula preparation. This study investigates the experiences of breastfeeding mothers living in temporary shelters within the earthquake-affected region.

A qualitative approach was employed to identify the challenges faced by breastfeeding mothers. The study’s sample included 14 mothers who met the inclusion criteria. Data were collected through a semi-structured interview form and analyzed using MAXQDA qualitative data analysis software, following Colaizzi’s 7-step method.

The mothers in the study ranged in age from 31-37 years, with their infants ranging from 10 days-6 months old. Based on the data gathered from the interviews, 4 main themes were identified: basic life needs (with sub-themes of housing, warmth, nutrition, hygiene/sanitation, sleep, and clothing), emotional difficulties (with sub-themes of shock, fear, crying, and stress), care difficulties (with sub-themes of challenges in accessing medication, constipation, diarrhea, reduced comfort, and decreased urine output), and breastfeeding difficulties (with sub-themes of breast rejection, breast engorgement, baby feeding issues, reduced milk production or interruption, and privacy concerns).

From the onset of the earthquake, mothers encountered significant challenges in breastfeeding their infants. In emergency and disaster situations, it is imperative that experienced health care personnel offer essential information and support to assist these mothers in navigating the difficulties they face.

This study aimed to determine the health needs of individuals with non-communicable diseases affected by earthquakes.

The study employed a descriptive and cross-sectional design and was conducted in 3 of the 11 provinces affected by the February 6, 2023 earthquakes. Data were obtained using an introductory information form and a health needs information form. Percentages, averages, McNemar’s test, and classification and regression tree algorithm for decision tree analysis were used to evaluate the data.

Among the participants, 34.87% had hypertension, 27.95% had diabetes, and 14.12% had asthma. Compared to the pre-earthquake period, the participants’ needs for medication, transportation to hospital, disease-specific nutrition, and social support significantly increased after the earthquake (P<0.05). This study revealed that participants with faced challenges in accessing the medicines, hospitals, medical devices, and disease-specific nutrition required for disease management during the early post-earthquake period, experiencing delays or no access. Among the identified health needs, participants with hypertension and diabetes require access to healthy nutrition, while those with asthma have a heightened need for clean air.

Conducting health screenings in tent cities without requiring individual attendance at health tents and promptly identifying and addressing health needs in the early period are strongly recommended.

The aim of this descriptive study was to assess diabetes self-management and health care demand procrastination behaviors among earthquake victims with type 2 diabetes.

The population of the study consisted of earthquake victims with Type 2 diabetes in Hatay, Türkiye. The sample included 202 people with type 2 diabetes who lived in 7 distinct container cities. Data were collected using the Introductory Information Form, Diabetes Self-Management Scale, and Healthcare Demand Procrastination Scale via face-to-face interviews.

Participants’ average score on the diabetes self-management scale was 58.34 ± 9.11. Being under the age of 60, employed, visiting a medical center on their own, having received diabetes education, and owning a glucometer were associated with better diabetes self-management, whereas being illiterate and having difficulty covering diabetes-related expenses were associated with poor diabetes management (P < 0.05). Participants’ average score on the Healthcare Demand Procrastination Scale was 2.35 ± 0.72. Respondents who didn’t have a nearby health care institution, whose diabetes diagnosis duration was between 1-5 years, and who didn’t have a glucometer had significantly higher scores on the Healthcare Demand Procrastination Scale (P < 0.05).

Diabetes self-management among earthquake victims with Type 2 diabetes was low. It was also determined that participants’ health care demand procrastination behaviors were at a moderate level.

Many people who are rescued alive from rubble after earthquakes suffer from crush injuries and associated acute kidney injury (AKI). McMahon score is used to determine the risk of AKI and mortality due to rhabdomyolysis in hospitalized patients. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the clinical findings, biochemical characteristics, and outcomes of crush injury patients admitted to our tertiary hospital and the use of the McMahon score in determining the need for renal replacement therapy (RRT) in this patient group.

Sociodemographic, clinical, and biochemical parameters of 28 patients who had creatine kinase levels of 1000 U/L and above were recorded. Patients with crush injuries requiring and not requiring RRT were compared according to the McMahon Score.

A total of 42% of patients developed AKI and 67% of them required renal replacement therapy. In crush injury patients requiring RRT, serum urea, creatinine, LDH, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine transaminase, phosphorus, and procalcitonin levels were significantly higher and albumin levels were significantly lower at admission compared to patients not requiring RRT. All patients who required RRT had a McMahon Score ≥6.

A high McMahon score at hospital admission is associated with an increased need for RRT.

This study aims to assess the prevalence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in mothers affected by the February 2023 earthquakes in Turkey and to explore the influence of spiritual well-being and other factors on their Post-Traumatic Growth (PTG) levels.

The study’s sample consisted of mothers invited to participate voluntarily through online social media platforms between October-December 2023. The Mother Information Form, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Control List, Post-Traumatic Growth Scale, and Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) were used as data collection instruments.

A total of 303 mothers participated in this study. The mean total PTSD score was 49.35 (SD: 19.76), and 83.5% of mothers were categorized under severe anxiety levels. There was a statistically significant weak and positive relationship between PTSD and PTG levels (r: 0.282, P:0.000). When the predictors of PTG are considered, the spiritual well-being of mothers significantly predicts PTG (F: 43.944, P: 0.000). It accounts for 12.7% (R Square = 0.127) of the variance in mothers’ PTG.

Mothers showed high PTSD levels 9 months after the earthquakes, but alongside these high levels, it has a positive relation with their PTG, which may show mothers becoming stronger after their traumatic experience. Study results showed the mothers’ spiritual levels were a significant predictor for PTG.

In recent years, Japan has experienced a series of earthquakes and torrential rain disasters in various regions, and in Gifu City, there is concern about the possibility ofNankai Trough earthquakes in the near future. However, pharmacists’ awareness of disaster preparedness and status of drug stockpiles in pharmacies are not clearly outlined.

A survey on disaster prevention and stockpiling was conducted in 286 pharmacies in Gifu City. Data were collected from August to the end of October 2022. A simple aggregate was used in the study.

The response rate was 66.8% (191 pharmacies). Among them, 9.9% (19 pharmacies) had stockpiles of medicines for disasters, in which 33.3% of the medicines needed in the early stages of a disaster were above the average overall stockpiling rate. In addition, 2.1% (4 pharmacies) selected medicines according to national or prefectural manuals, and 96.3% (184 pharmacies) preferred to have the “national or local government” bear the cost of stockpiling.

This study allowed us to understand the stockpiling situation of pharmacies in Gifu City in event of a disaster such as the Nankai Trough earthquake, which is likely to occur in the future. Based on these results, it is necessary to consider measures for disaster stockpiling.