Introduction: According to The International Disaster Database, one-third of disasters worldwide are technological. In Japan, chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive (CBRNE) disasters are less common than natural disasters. However, every hospital is required to respond, because once a disaster occurs, victims might rush to the nearest hospital regardless of the hospital’s preparedness. The present study aimed to determine the association between the readiness and willingness of regional hospitals to accept victims of CBRNE disasters. Methods: Physicians and nurses of middle rank and above who are currently working in the emergency departments of 685 regional medical care support hospitals were asked to respond to a questionnaire about their past experiences and preparedness with regard to CBRNE disasters and their willingness to respond if victims came to the hospital in the future. A binomial logistic regression analysis was used to confirm this association. The survey was approved by the institutional ethical review boards of the affiliated universities. Results: 105 physicians (15.3%) and 113 nurses (16.5%) responded to the survey. Regarding the respondents, 76.2% (80) of physicians and 69.0% (78) of nurses belonged to disaster-based hospitals. A total of 67.6% (71) of physicians and 54.9% (62) of nurses had previous CBRNE disaster response experience, including pandemics. Willingness to receive victims was significantly associated with the learning experience of the CBRNE disaster (physicians only), working at a disaster-based hospital, and having a history of victim acceptance training for chemical disasters, including terrorism. For nurses, the presence of manuals was associated with their willingness to accept victims of non-terrorist chemical, radiological, and explosive terrorist disasters. Conclusion: It is hoped that regional hospitals will improve their preparedness for CBRNE disasters. As the effectiveness of manuals and training for responding to victims has been suggested, disaster-based hospitals are expected to support these.
Sasaki et al. (Sun,) studied this question.