Stress among Emergency Health Care Workers on Nuclear or Radiation Disaster: A Preliminary State Survey

• Published in: International journal of environmental research and public health Vol. 18; no. 16; p. 8384
• Main Authors: Bouillon-Minois, Jean-Baptiste, Roux, Vincent, Pereira, Bruno, Flannery, Mara, Pelissier, Carole, Occelli, Céline, Schmidt, Jeannot, Navel, Valentin, Dutheil, Frédéric
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 08.08.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: Aircraft accidents & safety; Disasters; Emergencies; Emergency medical services; Ethics; Firefighters; Hazardous materials; Health care; Human health and pathology; Humanities and Social Sciences; Life Sciences; Medical personnel; Nuclear electric power generation; Nuclear energy; Nuclear power plants; Patients; Physicians; Population; Privacy; Psychology; Questionnaires; Radiation; Sociodemographics; Software; Standard deviation; Statistical analysis; Stress; France; United States > US; stress; emergency medicine; radiation; nuclear; prevention; public health; disaster
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18168384

Background: The nuclear or radiation disaster risk within the French Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes state is low (but not absent) due to its proximity to four Nuclear Power Generation Centers and two regional cancer control centers. This study aims to compare subjective stress ratings for emergency health care workers regarding nuclear and radiation disasters between two locations: at work versus at home. Materials and Methods: We distributed an anonymous online questionnaire via RedCap® to all emergency health care workers who could be involved in patient care after a nuclear or radiation disaster. It comprised 18 questions divided into three parts—theoretical knowledge and practical assessment, stress assessment, and sociodemographic criteria. Results: We analyzed 107 responses. There was a significant 11-point increase in stress levels between work and home regarding nuclear or radiation disaster risks (p = 0.01). Less than 25% of emergency health care workers surveyed benefited from annual training. Conclusion: The stress levels of emergency health care workers regarding nuclear or radiation disaster were higher at work than at home and increased without annual training. It is important to increase knowledge about these protocols and to mandate yearly training for all workers potentially involved in these disasters.