Disaster nursing skills, knowledge and attitudes required in earthquake relief: Implications for nursing education

BackgroundGlobally, nurses becoming more aware of getting better prepared for disaster relief, but in China, disaster nursing knowledge, courses and research are still limited.IntroductionChina has long been prone to disasters, but disaster nursing education and training is in its infancy.AimThis study explored the skills, knowledge and attitudes required by registered nurses from across China who worked in the aftermath of three large earthquakes to try to determine future disaster nursing education requirements.MethodThe Questionnaire of Nurses' Disaster Nursing Skills at Earthquake Sites, assessing nursing skills, knowledge and attitudes, was distributed to 139 registered nurses in 38 hospitals in 13 provinces across China who had worked in one or more earthquake disaster zones. Descriptive statistics were used for quantitative data, and content analysis for qualitative data.ResultsEighty‐nine questionnaires were returned, a response rate of 68.3%. No respondent had ever received specific disaster nursing training prior to their post‐earthquake nursing. Skills most often used by respondents were haemostasis bandaging, fixation, manual handling, observation and monitoring, debrid