Design and validation of a hospital emergency department preparedness questionnaire for radiation accidents, nuclear accidents, and nuclear terrorism in Iran

Authors

  • Milad Ahmadi Marzaleh, MPH, PhD
  • Rita Rezaee, PhD
  • Abbas Rezaianzadeh, PhD
  • Mahnaz Rakhshan, PhD
  • Gholamhassan Haddadi, PhD
  • Mahmoudreza Peyravi, MD, PhD

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5055/ajdm.2020.0377

Keywords:

preparedness, emergency department, hospital, radiation accidents, nuclear accidents, terrorism

Abstract

Background and objectives: Radiation accidents can cause numerous challenges to hospitals, the appropriate medical responses to which may save the lives of countless people. The present study aimed at the design and validation of an Emergency Department preparedness questionnaire for hospital emergency departments (EDs) in the case of radiation accidents, nuclear accidents, and nuclear terrorism in Iran.

Materials and methods: This multistage cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019. The questionnaire items were created with the reference to article reviews and expert judgement. The validity of the questionnaire was assessed through face, content, and construct validities. Additionally, its reliability was estimated using measures of internal consistency and stability, namely Cronbachs alpha and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). To this end, the questionnaire was completed by the ED staff in the hospitals of Iran.

Results: The proposed 48-item questionnaire consisted of three themes: staff preparedness, stuff preparedness, and structure preparedness. The face and content validities were confirmed by expert judgement. All items remained with content validity ratio (CVR) > 0.7 and the mean content validity index (CVI) = 0.891. The overall Cronbachs alpha and ICC were 0.781 and 0.709, respectively for the whole questionnaire.

Conclusion: Hospital ED preparedness in radiation and nuclear accidents requires readiness of staff, stuff, and structure of the ED, the consideration of which will properly respond to radiation and nuclear accidents. Thus, upstream organizations like the Ministry of Health and the Emergency Organization should oblige hospital EDs to make themselves be more prepared by codifying certain imperative laws and policies.

Author Biographies

Milad Ahmadi Marzaleh, MPH, PhD

Co-First Author, Clinical Education Research Center, Health Human Resources Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

Rita Rezaee, PhD

Co-First Author, Clinical Education Research Center, Health Human Resources Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran 

Abbas Rezaianzadeh, PhD

Professor, School of Health, Department of Epidemiology, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

Mahnaz Rakhshan, PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

Gholamhassan Haddadi, PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Radiology, Ionizing and Nonionizing Radiation Research Center, School of Paramedical, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

Mahmoudreza Peyravi, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor, Department of Health in Disasters and Emergencies, Health Human Resources Research Center, School of Management and Medical Informatics, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran; Research Center for Emergency and Disaster Resilience, Red Crescent Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Tehran, Iran

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Published

10/01/2020

How to Cite

Marzaleh, MPH, PhD, M. A., R. Rezaee, PhD, A. Rezaianzadeh, PhD, M. Rakhshan, PhD, G. Haddadi, PhD, and M. Peyravi, MD, PhD. “Design and Validation of a Hospital Emergency Department Preparedness Questionnaire for Radiation Accidents, Nuclear Accidents, and Nuclear Terrorism in Iran”. American Journal of Disaster Medicine, vol. 15, no. 4, Oct. 2020, pp. 283-92, doi:10.5055/ajdm.2020.0377.

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