Primary Health care and Disasters—The Current State of the Literature: What We Know, Gaps and Next Steps

Abstract

Primary Health Care is very important for effective health emergency management during response and recovery, but also for risk reduction, including preparedness. There is need to; increase the quality of this research, clarify terminology, encourage paper authorship from LICs, develop and validate PHC- specific disaster indicators and to encourage organizations involved in PHC disaster activities to publish data. Lessons learned from high-income countries need contextual analysis about applicability in low-income countries.

General practitioners in the field: A qualitative study of general practitioners’ experiences in disaster healthcare

“…[1][2][3] This includes addressing acute psychosocial distress, acute lower acuity physical injuries, ongoing management of chronic conditions and coordination of referrals. [4][5][6] However, there is a paucity of research documenting GPs' frontline contributions to healthcare during disaster responses 7 and little guidance for GPs currently facing disasters in their communities on how to best contribute. 8 At a policy level, a paucity of understanding of GP capabilities and contributions in disaster response translates into little integration into disaster healthcare planning and response.…”

“…8 At a policy level, a paucity of understanding of GP capabilities and contributions in disaster response translates into little integration into disaster healthcare planning and response. [7][8][9][10] At a practitioner level, a lack of inclusion in guidelines and frameworks risks under-preparedness, lack of clarity about responsibilities and isolation in response. 8,11 Combined, these represent a significant lost opportunity to reduce disaster health risks and optimise healthcare at a time of overwhelming medical need and demand, 10 as well as to provide structured support to local GPs who are exposed personally and professionally.…”

“…The results of this study add to the limited research related to GP involvement in disasters and respond to the request for research documenting primary healthcare activities in this field. 7 Despite abundant scientific evidence for the crucial need for strong primary healthcare to support a strong healthcare system, [1][2][3][4][5]17,[19][20][21][22][23] and the documented high burden of primary healthcare needs in disasters, 1-5 most of the effort and resources in disaster healthcare still focus on acute secondary and tertiary services. 23 If you don't involve primary health care more broadly and general practice specifically, you're missing most of the health system.…”

Operationalising emergency care delivery in sub-Saharan Africa: consensus-based recommendations for healthcare facilities

“…This programming is often poorly matched to the realities of delivery systems in which a large number of patients do not access health services through primary care but rather seek sporadic, symptom-driven care from the closest health facility when they are acutely unwell 1 2. A system that is purpose-designed for an integrated approach to the resuscitation, stabilisation and diagnosis of patients with these potentially fatal conditions can provide reductions in morbidity and mortality across all at-risk populations: acute care is such a system and includes all health system components that are leveraged to mitigate the time-dependent morbidity or mortality of sudden and unexpected illness or injury 3.…”

Triage performance of Swedish physicians using the ATLS algorithm in a simulated mass casualty incident: a prospective cross-sectional survey

“…Exercises and training are essential elements in preparedness [15-18]. Medical teams in a disaster or a mass casualty incident (MCI) are forced to operate in a difficult environment [19].…”