About this course: Have you ever viewed a news report depicting the aftermath of a devastating natural disaster? The damage to human life and property are both staggering and heartbreaking. All parts of the world face the possibility of floods, hurricanes, tornados, fires, landslides, earthquakes, tsunamis, and other natural phenomena. Are you prepared if disaster would strike you? This course will help you prepare! The course is appropriate for any learner who is proactive about developing the core competencies of disaster readiness and survival planning. It is especially useful if you are seeking techniques that can ensure your personal protection, as well as the safety of your family, property, and belongings, during a natural disaster. In addition, it offers essential preparation for a variety of emergency situations and inconveniences, even if you do not live in major tornado, flood, hurricane, tsunami, or earthquake zone. For instance, could you and your loved ones manage without access to potable water, electricity, fuel, and banking facilities? If you are unsure of your ability to respond in any of these possible scenarios, this course is for you! Throughout the course, you will be introduced to the Disaster Cycle, specifically the Mitigation and Recovery phases, and will create an extensive personal preparedness plan for survival in the absence of common amenities, such as food and water, shelter, and communication. You will also acquire practical, easy-to-apply strategies for maintaining a healthy attitude during disaster which can allow you to remain calm, avoid panic, and draw upon inner and outer resources in dire circumstances. Although death may be an inevitable outcome of extreme circumstances, a balanced outlook can provide comfort for all parties involved. Finally, issues of how institutions and governments can aid in disaster are also discussed. If you are interested in this topic you may be interested in other online programs at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. Learn more about those programs by visiting our website: http://www.online.pitt.edu/programs/school-of-nursing/
Created by: University of Pittsburgh
Taught by: Michael Beach, Assistant Professor
School of Nursing
| Level | Beginner |
| Commitment | 10-15 hours of lectures, quizzes, and assignments |
| Language | English |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
Introduction & Disaster Cycle
A disaster can be defined in several ways, but in all cases is a destructive event that overwhelms all available resources. A disaster may originate as natural or manmade and may be intentional or accidental. A natural disaster is caused by the forces of natur...
7 videos, 2 readings
Graded: Introduction & Disaster Cycle
WEEK 2
Personal Preparedness Basics
There are a few extreme circumstances such as a 30 foot wall of water during a tsunami or a 10-point Richter scale earthquake that are so severe it is impossible to prepare for the disaster. However, in most cases people can take a few steps to ensure their s...
5 videos, 2 readings
Graded: Personal Preparedness Basics
WEEK 3
Personal Preparedness Safety
As we have discussed, disasters significantly overwhelm community resources and it is critical that you have a plan. In the last module, we considered the basics of food, shelter, and water in your personal preparedness plan. In this module, we move on to th...
7 videos, 2 readings
Graded: Personal Preparedness Safety
WEEK 4
Attitudes and Awareness
Disasters are understandably stressful situations that trigger panic, fear, confusion, and uncertainty. During a disaster, you lose control of many aspects of your life. Your family may not be together. You may not be able to access food, water, shelter, tra...
6 videos, 2 readings
Graded: Attitudes and Awareness
Graded: Personal/Family Disaster Plan
WEEK 5
International Perspectives
In this module, we welcome guest speaker Dr. Kenichi Ogura who will discuss disaster planning in Japan. Dr. Ogura works at the Center for Emergency Medicine in Kanazawa Medical University Hospital. I am confident you will find Dr. Ogura’s presentation very he...
1 video, 2 readings
Graded: International Perspectives
WEEK 6
Support and Medical Considerations
During Module 6, we will explore triage as a necessary but difficult task during disaster management. Triage is using the available resources to effectively treat the maximum number of patients with the greatest chance of survival. The process requires the cl...
3 videos
Graded: Support and Medical Considerations
WEEK 7
Wilderness Survival
In the last module we talked about how disasters can displace you and your family from the comforts of your home, leaving you without food, water, and electricity. However, if you were left without shelter, or forced to take refuge in the natural habitat, are ...
6 videos, 2 readings, 1 practice quiz
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Ratings and Reviews
Great course, really enjoyed it.
It gives basic preparations for disaster and where to go in case of disasters, which really helps.
I think this is a very practical course for every person
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A well prepared step by step plan which has been prepared. Very easy to understand and made it very interesting to learn and enjoy the course. Tx for intimating few of the important activity though know about it but had completely ignored it during our normal life activity