%0 Journal Article
%T Emergency preparedness for heat illness in China: a cross-sectional observational  study
%J International emergency nursing
%D 2020
%A Zhao, Lijuan
%A Lin, Xingfeng
%A Zang, Yuli
%V 54
%N 
%P e100957-e100957
%X BACKGROUND: The morbidity and mortality rates from heat illness have increased due  to a higher number of heatwaves. Effective urgent care of heat illness is crucial  for optimizing patient outcomes. However, few studies have examined the emergency  preparedness measures required for treating such patients. <br><br>METHODS: From December  23, 2019, to January 23, 2020, a content-validated instrument containing the  Perceived Emergency Preparedness Scale for heat illness (heatPEPS) was administered  to emergency nurses in China through WeChat. Some of these nurses were retested two  weeks later. SPSS 26, IRTPRO 4.2, and NVivo 12 Plus were used for data analysis. <br><br>RESULTS: In total, 46.4% (200/431) of the participants returned valid responses. With dichotomous scoring, a high score for heatPEPS (mean 7.29; SD 1.667) was  elicited. The reduced 9-item heatPEPS had a perfect fit with the 2PL model  (M(2) = 27.24, p > 0.05; RMSEA = 0.01) and acceptable internal (α = 0.68) and  test-rest reliability (intraclass correlation = 0.56). Many participants (74%) were  dissatisfied with their heat illness-related knowledge and skills, suggesting an  area that could be improved for better emergency preparedness. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Emergency  departments appear to be well-prepared; however, this is subject to social  desirability bias. The 9-item heatPEPS is a reliable and valid tool to measure  emergency preparedness for heat illness.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
%G en
%I Elsevier Publishing
%@ 1755-599X
%U http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ienj.2020.100957