Mbola Patience, Nkosi Davies V, Morakinyo Oyewale M
Department of Environmental Health, Faculty of Science, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria, South Africa.
Department of Environmental and Occupational Studies, Faculty of Applied Science, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa.
Jamba. 2024 Sep 30;16(1):1706. doi: 10.4102/jamba.v16i1.1706. eCollection 2024.
The growing frequency and severity of disasters worldwide have highlighted the need for environmental health practitioners to be equipped with specialised training to respond effectively to evolving public health contexts. Disasters can have long-lasting impacts on the environment and environmental health services, necessitating prompt and effective responses. However, the current environmental health workforce faces challenges in acquiring the necessary competencies to address environmental health threats during disasters. This narrative review synthesises existing literature on disaster management education for environmental health professionals, exploring current training, advancements and emerging trends. The review follows Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines and includes a total of 45 records that met inclusion criteria (compromising 15 peer-reviewed articles and 30 training records) published between 2002 and 2023. Findings highlight the expansion of environmental health degree programmes to include disaster management, better preparing newly qualified practitioners. However, a knowledge gap remains for previously qualified practitioners. High-income countries prioritising capacity building for environmental health practitioners in disaster management are better equipped to respond to and mitigate disasters.
The review suggests that with proper basic training for disaster responders, more lives can be saved during and after disasters. It highlights the insufficiency of current training programmes and emphasises the need for advanced role-specific training for environmental health practitioners. The review emphasises the need for advanced role-specific training, community assessment skills and focused disaster response strategies to enhance environmental health practitioners' ability to respond to disasters and improve public health resilience. Enhanced training, capacity building and collaboration are necessary to improve the competencies, skills and knowledge of environmental health practitioners in disaster risk management and public health emergencies.
全球范围内灾害发生的频率和严重程度不断增加，凸显了环境卫生从业者需要接受专业培训，以便有效应对不断变化的公共卫生环境。灾害会对环境和环境卫生服务产生长期影响，因此需要迅速而有效的应对措施。然而，当前的环境卫生工作队伍在获取应对灾害期间环境卫生威胁所需的能力方面面临挑战。本叙述性综述综合了关于环境卫生专业人员灾害管理教育的现有文献，探讨了当前的培训、进展和新趋势。该综述遵循系统评价和荟萃分析的首选报告项目指南，共纳入了2002年至2023年期间发表的45篇符合纳入标准的记录（包括15篇同行评审文章和30篇培训记录）。研究结果表明，环境卫生学位课程有所扩展，纳入了灾害管理内容，从而更好地培养新合格的从业者。然而，对于先前合格的从业者来说，仍然存在知识差距。高收入国家优先为环境卫生从业者进行灾害管理能力建设，更有能力应对和减轻灾害影响。
该综述表明，通过对灾害应对者进行适当的基础培训，在灾害期间和之后可以挽救更多生命。它突出了当前培训计划的不足，并强调了为环境卫生从业者提供高级特定角色培训的必要性。该综述强调需要高级特定角色培训、社区评估技能和重点突出的灾害应对策略，以提高环境卫生从业者应对灾害的能力并增强公共卫生复原力。加强培训、能力建设和协作对于提高环境卫生从业者在灾害风险管理和公共卫生紧急情况方面的能力、技能和知识是必要的。
