Runtime: 2022 until 2027
Client: Pandemic and Disaster Preparedness Center (PDPC)
Project description
Floods profoundly affect our healthcare system, from the evacuation of hospitals to the provision of home care for vulnerable individuals, thereby heightening the need for resilience within the health system. Even when the water subsides, the crisis endures, demanding a focus on managing the aftermath of floodings. In this project, we delve into "caring" during floods, encompassing not only the healthcare dynamics but also other key governance domains such as water management and crisis management.
Our project is multifaceted and currently encompasses:
- Caring during and after the flooding events of 2021 in Dutch Limburg across various domains.
- Examining the experiences of caregivers during hospital evacuations.
- Preparing for floods within the health system in the southwest of the Netherlands.
For this research, we discuss our work often with actors within the health management, water management and crisis management domain, such as acute care networks, waterboards, and safety regions. Furthermore, we collaborate with researchers from TU Delft as part of a frontrunner project of the PDPC. This collaboration integrates our expertise in the governance of the healthcare system during crises with knowledge of flood hazard scenarios and patient logistics. Together, we develop a game to prepare administrators and caregivers to make informed decisions during flood-related crises.
Team
Karin van Vuuren
Bert de Graaff
Robert Borst
Roland Bal (PI)
External partners: Frontrunner members at TU Delft
Activities
- ESA-ISA midterm, Esbjerg (oral presentation, 2023)
- European Public Health Conference, Dublin (oral presentation, 2023)
- PDPC conference, Utrecht (oral presentation, 2023)
- PDPC conference, Utrecht (poster presentation and public award for best poster prize, 2023)