Exploring the non-technical competencies for on-scene public health responders in chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear emergencies: a qualitative study

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to define and delineate specific non-technical competencies for first-line public health responders in Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) emergencies in China. STUDY DESIGN: A qualitative study was conducted in China involving interviews with key informants in the field of health response to CBRN disasters. METHODS: One-on-one in-depth interviews were carried out with 20 participants, including expert members of National Medical Response Teams for CBRN disasters, officials at emergency management authorities, and scholars of academic institutions related to CBRN emergency. Interviews were recorded using audio equipment, transcribed, and coded into codable passages as per grounded theory using NVivo software. Themes were identified within the transcriptions by using thematic analysis. RESULTS: A total of 159 codable passages were produced. Eight domains of non-technical core competencies were identified: (1) situation awareness, (2) communication skills, (3) collaboration, (4) resource management, (5) task management, (6) cultural competency, (7) austere environment skills, and (8) physical stamina. CONCLUSIONS: The study identified a variety of competencies for on-scene public health responders in CBRN emergencies. The findings of this study could specifically benefit development of strategy and improvement of content of education and training. Further research that involves input from the disaster response community at large is needed for the validation of these competencies.