Work

Coordination-related ethical challenges in large-scale earthquake response: a cross-sectional survey of field and institutional personnel involved in the 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquake response, Türkiye

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Background Sustainable disaster response depends not only on technical and logistical capacity but also on ethically robust coordination that preserves human dignity, fairness, and public trust. The 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes in Türkiye created complex coordination environments in which ethical challenges emerged during field operations. To identify coordination-related ethical challenges reported by personnel deployed after the 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes in Türkiye and to examine whether these challenges varied by demographic, professional, and deployment characteristics. Methods This descriptive cross-sectional survey included 417 officially deployed search-and-rescue, health, and support personnel. Data were collected using a 30-item Ethical Issues Assessment Form developed from national and international disaster-response frameworks and refined through expert review. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used for analysis. Results Ethical issue reporting varied significantly by professional title, educational level, work setting, prior disaster experience, and prior in-service disaster training. No significant differences were found by gender, perceived resource adequacy, or reported obstruction by supervisors. Frequently reported challenges included disruptions in information flow, resource scarcity, inequitable resource allocation, ambiguity in authority and decision-making, language barriers with international teams, and problems related to uncoordinated volunteer involvement. Volunteer-related ethical problems were significantly associated with inefficient resource use and disruptions in information flow. Conclusions Coordination failures in large-scale earthquake response can generate ethical risks as well as operational inefficiencies. Strengthening role clarity, transparent resource allocation, information governance, structured volunteer management, and staff support may improve both disaster response effectiveness and public trust.

Source: BMC Public Health

DOI: 10.1186/s12889-026-30071-y

Authors: Filiz Turk, Mevlut Karadag, Ismet Sahin

Institutions: Ministry of Health, Lokman Hekim Üniversitesi

Language: English

Topic: Disaster Response and Management

Subfield: Emergency Medical Services

Field: Health Professions

Domain: Health Sciences

SDGs: Peace, justice, and strong institutions, Partnerships for the goals

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,290