Household preparedness and perceptions of workforce preparedness during pandemics: A health care employee survey at the US Department of Veterans Affairs
APA Citation:
Der-Martirosian, C., Balut, M. D., & Dobalian, A. (2022). Household preparedness and perceptions of workforce preparedness during pandemics: A health care employee survey at the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, 16, 1953-1958. https://doi.org/10.1017/dmp.2021.198
Focus:
Other
Branch of Service:
Multiple branches
Military Affiliation:
Veteran
Subject Affiliation:
Veteran
Military medical service providers
Population:
Adulthood (18 yrs & older)
Young adulthood (18 - 29 yrs)
Thirties (30 - 39 yrs)
Middle age (40 - 64 yrs)
Aged (65 yrs & older)
Authors:
Der-Martirosian, Claudia, Balut, Michelle D., Dobalian, Aram
Abstract:
Objective:To examine the effects of household preparedness on perceptions of workplace preparedness during a pandemic among all employees at the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical facilities.Methods:The VA Preparedness Survey (October–December 2018, Los Angeles, CA) used a stratified simple random, web-based survey. Multivariate statistical analyses examined the effect of household preparedness on perceptions of workforce preparedness during a pandemic: institutional readiness; desire for additional training; and understanding their role and its importance.Results:VA employees totaling 4026 participated. For a pandemic, 55% were confident in their VA medical facility’s ability to respond, 63% would like additional training, 49% understood their role during a response, and 68% reported their role as important. Only 23% reported being “well prepared” at home during major disasters. After controlling for study-relevant factors, household preparedness was positively associated with perceptions of workforce preparedness during a pandemic.Conclusions:Efforts to increase household preparedness for health care employees could bolster workforce preparedness during pandemics. Organizations should consider robust policies and strategies, such as flexible work arrangements, in order to mitigate factors that may serve as barriers to household preparedness.
Publisher/Sponsoring Organization:
Cambridge University Press
Publication Type:
Article
Keywords:
health care worker, household preparedness, pandemics, US Department of Veterans Affairs, workforce preparedness