The Earthquake Preparedness Status of Kafkas University Faculty Members

INTRODUCTION: Turkey is home to one of the world's most active seismic belts, the North Anatolian Fault Zone. Severe earthquakes occur in the region, and particularly in areas near the fault line. Education and the establishment of an attitude of earthquake awareness and preparedness can reduce the destructive effect of these natural disasters. The objective of the present study was to determine the earthquake preparedness level of instructors at Kafkas University.
METHODS: Instructors from the Faculty of Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Educational Sciences, Economics and Administrative Sciences, and Arts and Sciences at Kafkas University were included in this descriptive study. Two questionnaires were used to conduct this research: The first recorded demographic details of the respondents, and the second questionnaire was an Earthquake Preparedness Form based on the Revised and Translated Mulilis–Lippa Earthquake Preparedness Scale.
RESULTS: The mean score of the instructors in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine was 9.16±3.27, while it was 9.04±3.26 for members of the Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, 7.76±3.33 for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, 7.48±3.26 for the Faculty of Medicine, and 7.16±3.16 for the Faculty of Educational Sciences.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The survey revealed that even well-educated university faculty members are not ready for an earthquake. Additional efforts are needed to prepare the community for a natural disaster.