Table 1.

Disaster responders’ concerns and planners’ potential mitigating actions.⁵,¹⁸–²⁵

Responders’ Concerns	Mitigating Actions
Risk to/safety of responder	Actions to help protect responder: priority for vaccinations, priority for prophylactic/treatment medications, appropriate/sufficient PPE, and prespecified responder decontamination procedures Clear, continuous, consistent, honest, and transparent communication to all responders Continuously available (and updatated as necessary) disaster plan Knowledgeable individuals available to answer any workplace safety questions
Risk to/safety of responder’s family and loved ones	Actions to help protect family: priority for vaccinations, priority for prophylactic/treatment medications, decontaminating responder, and providing PPE at home Clear, proactive, consistent, honest, transparent, and ongoing communication from employer to responder’s family Continuously available (and updated as necessary) disaster plan Knowledgeable individuals available to answer any questions about responder and family safety
Child and elder care	Provide paid sitters or care at health care facility Arrange, in advance, for local governments to keep schools open, whenever possible
Risk to/safety of responder’s pets	Provide or pay for pet care
Trust/confidence in health care organization/leadership	Have and communicate to all employees an all-hazard disaster plan, including risk-reduction measures, that is easily accessible, practiced, and modified as necessary based on circumstances Maintain clear, continuous, consistent, honest, and transparent communication to all responders about current disaster knowledge and plan Overtly and continuously demonstrate duty to protect and support responders
Inadequate disaster-related Human Resource policies30	Provide life/disability insurance and liability/legal protection for duration of disaster response Responders may leave work as necessary Flexible work hours Clear return-to-work policies Provide responders with communication (if possible) to their families
Adequate reimbursement for time and activities	Guaranteed appropriate pay/comp time/bonus pay for level of their activities
Safe, guaranteed transportation	Private vans or rooms and board at health care facility Arrange, in advance, for local governments to keep mass transit systems running, whenever possible
Mandatory quarantine	Clear, consistent, and reasonable quarntine policy
Personal illness/PTSD	Guaranteed treatment for disaster-acquired medical/psychiatric problems
Job requirements	Effort to make all responders feel they are valued part of the disaster response Clear description of any modified job expectations/requirements during disaster

PPE, personal protective equippment; PTSD, postraumatic stress disorder.

Reprinted, with permission, from the Journal of Environmental and Occupational Medicine.⁷