Emergency Medicine, Trauma and Disaster Management: From Prehospital to Hospital Care and Beyond

by Emmanouil Pikoulis (editor), Jay Doucet (Editor)

The number of natural and man-made disasters has risen dramatically over the last decade. Natural disasters, industrial accidents and terrorist attacks represent major incidents, often involving multiple casualties. In such cases, health professionals face multiple challenges because the type of medical care required differs from what is taught and provided in their everyday hospital duties. The aim of this book is to inform and prepare healthcare professionals for the challenges posed by major incidents, so that they can act effectively in medical teams sent on humanitarian missions or into conflict zones. It offers a holistic and horizontal approach covering all stages of the disaster management cycle. The book is divided into 5 section 1: prehospital emergency services; section hospital response; section management of incidents; section after the disaster; and section evaluation, ethical issues, education and research. Healthcare providers will find essential information on the special medical considerations in both prehospital and hospital disaster settings, medical management of disaster response, recovery, mitigation and preparedness. The book offers an interdisciplinary and interprofessional approach, and was written by prominent researchers and experienced practitioners.

650 pages, Paperback

Published June 14, 2022

Reviews

[J. Joseph · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an adequate collection of informational chapters meant to educate healthcare workers on the situations that may arise in emergencies and disasters (as the title leads one to expect). It's divided into 5 sections containing 49 chapters. Sections include: prehospital emergency services (9 chapters), hospital response (22 chapters), management of specific incidents (8 chapters), after the disaster (4 chapters), and evaluation, ethics, education and research (6 chapters). Topics covered range from triage and transport of casualties to infectious disease management.

While the book contains significant information and was compiled by international societies for emergency management, the content is often quite repetitive and underwhelming. There are a handful of really impressive or impactful chapters, but most provide a bare minimum information - almost as if this was a textbook for students rather than a guidebook/informational book for acting professionals already in the field. As a textbook, I'd probably rate it higher, but that is not how it is intended to be treated and thus the rating I've given (which for clarity is a 2.75, rounded up).