Disaster Preparedness, a Rehabilitation Nursing Priority

In the United States and globally, all individuals are at risk of direct involvement in a disaster. According to the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, in Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2011 there were approximately two federally declared disasters per week in the United States, resulting in an annual 10-year high of 99 federally declared disasters. Moreover, in the past decade, the United States has suffered numerous major disasters, including those of both man-made and natural origins, with devastating results. Examples of these occurrences include the events of 9/11, hurricane Katrina, wild fires in California, tornadoes in the Midwest, blizzards in the East, and many other confirmed disasters. The recent earthquakes in Japan and Haiti, with the subsequent mass causalities, further illustrate the ever-present danger of disasters occurring at any time and location.