NURS FPX 6020 Assessment 1
[Student Name]
Capella University
[Prof. Name]
September 2025
NURS FPX 6020 Assessment 1: Risk Assessment
The importance of risk assessment was brought into the limelight in April 2024 when two tornadoes hit the Kankakee County, Illinois, region exactly at the same moment, resulting in major havoc and leaving residents without power throughout the week. It began as a heavy downpour and formed a couple of funnel clouds, and generated two tornadoes in various places across the county. These storms felled numerous tree limbs and power wires so that five to seven days later many areas were without electricity. The needs of the people were to be fully measured through a careful risk assessment and decision making so that the cleanup could be allowed, and the risk reduced to the health and well-being of the people. The first hazards that affected the town were fallen power lines, carbon monoxide poisoning, or building materials that were exposed or damaged (National Weather Service, n.d.). Besides these physical risks, the community should also be assessed due to other risks in NURS FPX 6020 Assessment 1, including infectious diseases, fast depletion of the resources, a decrease in the perception of safety and security that define the risk assessment.
Apply Decision-Making Approach
The Midwest is not associated with big earthquakes or strong hurricanes that beat the coast, but it has tornadoes. In the year 2024, the number of tornadoes in the state of Illinois was a record 142 tornadoes due to the 1,796 confirmed tornadoes in the United States. The highest number of tornadoes ever recorded was in 2006 when 125 tornadoes struck Illinois (National Weather Service, n.d.). The 2020 US census indicates that there are 107,502 residents of Kankakee County (U.S. Census Bureau, n.d.). The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that 19,546 people in Kankakee County are 65 years and older (U.S. Census Bureau, n.d.). During the two tornadoes, power was cut off to many people because the power lines and tree branches were
broken. This caused the elderly in Kankakee County to be concerned with the loss of power, particularly those who were dependent on it due to health reasons as per the NURS FPX 6020 Assessment 1. Thousands of elderly and non-elderly residents spent several days without electricity, which caused food spoilage and forced to find other sources to supply residents with medical requirements that demanded equipment or medicine. This explains the need to take risk assessment and plan their preparation efficiently. The health of a person is threatened when he or she fails to access simple necessities such as food, shelter, water, and medication. Lack of clean drinking water, overheating due to improper shelter and/or air conditioning, and worsening health conditions due to the inability to obtain and store prescriptions properly are a few of the new problems that have cropped up in the SID.
The Adaptive Decision-Making Model is an effective model to explain how individuals, groups, and communities adjust to high-stakes and rapidly changing occurrences such as tornadoes. The model captures the decision-making mechanism adopted by the emergency management personnel and the local community to analyze hazards, adapt to evolving conditions, and quickly prevent tornadoes in Kankakee County (Costa et al., 2023). The adaptive decision-making model is based on behavioral research and emergency management theory. According to NURS FPX 6020 Assessment 1, the concept of fast decision-making during emergency scenarios is highlighted, and some key elements of the process are presented. The definitional components comprising the Adaptive Decision-Making Model include among others, situational awareness, risk perception, health risk assessment, choice evaluation, information search, implementation action, and revision. The society should be made aware of the seriousness of the condition and the dangers. In this case, that would be to be aware of the seriousness of the tornado and the hazards it poses in the neighborhood. Once the circumstances
are recognized, the community must recognize the tornado threat by comprehending the warnings and searching for environmental cues that indicate the tornado’s intensity. Maintaining current, accurate information about tornadoes and the threats they bring to Kankakee County is a crucial component of being ready for any event. Depending on the existing circumstances created by the tornado, the community must take one of several alternative approaches while dealing with its aftermath. One of the most crucial things you can do while a tornado is approaching is to act. For others, deciding whether an evacuation is required or if a shelter-in-place arrangement is more suitable requires the use of risk assessment tools. As stated in NURS FPX 6020 Assessment 1, the community’s final stage is to gather input and make any necessary adjustments in light of newly acquired knowledge or evolving circumstances.
The Adaptive Decision-Making Model identifies the relevance of context-sensitive, adaptable, and informed adjustment as an essential component of the Kankakee County tornado risk management plan. It helps to understand that not just a plan suffices to respond to a disaster; the community needs to be able to adjust it whenever new data emerges (Illinois Emergency Management Agency & Office of Homeland Security, 2023). In places such as Kankakee County where climate change might lead to increased or serious occurrences, flexible plans are even more important.
The increasing number of tornadoes poses some concerns that there could be some environmental health impacts, hence the importance of risk assessment template. People are also particularly concerned with air pollution because of the high winds generated by tornadoes, particularly those people who are already vulnerable to respiratory ailments. One of the major issues includes the particulate pollution generated by natural and construction waste. On the same note, lung penetration or respiratory tract inflammation due to gases or particle substance
exposure, is something to be alarmed at and thus the need to do what is risk assessment (Ayta, 2024). Another area of concern is rainstorms before or after the tornadoes as these rainstorms may lead to flash flooding commonly referred to as standing water. As it stated in NURS FPX 6020 Assessment 1, overflow of sewage or standing water is a significant health risk because it accumulates bacteria and other pollutants, such as trash, feces, fuel, and debris, among other chemical wastes. Learning about the water safety measures that you should observe is the only way you can prevent getting sick after a flood (Yap & Al-Mutairi, 2022).
Apply Personalized Information
About a quarter of the population of Kankakee County is above 60. With this age demographic in mind, it is important to recognize that 94.9% of individuals aged 60 and above in the US have at least one health concern that they need to address (Top 10 chronic illnesses impacting older adults). As the U.S. Census Bureau (n.d.) notes, 7.4 percent of the Kankakee County population is believed to have functional limitations on completing everyday living activities, thus hampering their ability to live on their own. Moreover, both illness management and prevention and the affordability of treatment play a vital role in the 11.5 percent poverty rate in Kankakee County (U.S census Bureau, n.d.).
The fact that this region is part of the Midwest means that it is prone to a number of environmental hazards, with tornadoes being the most significant of all. Hence, it is important to discuss those issues with some of the most vulnerable citizens of the county. These residents are more prone to health problems due to the heightened exposure to both air pollution and stagnant water as a result of the storm damage. As described in NURS FPX 6020 Assessment 1, the prevalence of chronic illness among the over-60 population in Kankakee County implies that standing water, infections, and/or air pollutants can worsen conditions, as does the lack of electricity
According to a Kankakee County research, older and low-income residents were more likely to experience poor health due to poor air quality and limited access to medical treatment. These groups are more susceptible to respiratory conditions and chronic illnesses. However, more thorough data on healthcare consumption and neighborhood exposures would be required for a more accurate health risk assessment in order to address any biases and omissions in the risk estimates that are now available.
Integrate Epidemiological and System-Level Aggregate Data
Kankakee County is a unique example of a county with chronic disease trends and natural disasters, including tornadoes, which shape the picture of its public health. Epidemiology indicates that there is high prevalence of chronic illness in the county. As an example, the adult obesity prevalence of 36 is almost two times higher than the national prevalence, and the prevalence of diabetes of 11 is nearly twice that of the nation (Kankakee County Health Department, 2020). Tobacco smoking is chronic, 20 percent of the population report never doing leisure-time physical activity and lifestyle risk factors compound these adverse health impacts (Kankakee County Health Department, 2020).
Access to healthcare in Kankakee County is hindered by a number of structural issues. The most visible symptom of pressure is the primary care physician to resident ratio, which is around 1,500 to 1 in our area and much higher than the 1,000 to 1 national average. Additionally, about 12% of the population lacks health insurance, making it challenging for them to access emergency and preventative care (U.S. Census Bureau, n.d.). All of these systemic barriers delay the treatment of chronic diseases and needless ER visits.
Health care outcomes in the region are complicated by environmental exposures. Since
Kankakee County sees many tornadoes every ten years, it is considered a high-risk tornado area.
Because they destroy medical facilities, interfere with drug access, and cause physical and mental stress, tornadoes disproportionately harm vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, the impoverished, and the crippled. For example, a storm-related displacement may make it more difficult for patients to receive prescription medicine refills or follow-up medical care, which could worsen chronic respiratory problems or diabetes. It is clear from these system-level constraints and epidemiologic patterns that public health planning is an essential component of all-encompassing catastrophe preparedness. Targeting vulnerable individuals during and after tornadoes, managing chronic illness, and strengthening the health care system are all essential to improving population health outcomes in Kankakee County.
Need for Communicating Effectively with the Community
Engaging with community members in a positive and encouraging manner during difficult times is just as important as educating the public about the seriousness of any possible health risks. Public education on safety measures, such as avoiding standing water, damaged structures, fallen trees and power lines, and power outages, is part of this. It is easier to be prepared for severe weather and any potential storm-related hazards when you have supplies on hand beforehand. This includes having bottled water, battery-operated flashlights and radios, working generators, a way to take prescription medications, and a safe place to remain in case of an emergency. Furthermore, even if it is hard to foresee every potential threat, meeting requests can mean the difference between life and death (Gustin, 2020).
In reality, social media has become an essential communication tool for reaching a wide audience. There are numerous Facebook groups available to Kankakee County residents. We invite people to use this group to let other members know about any problems that are happening
References
Ayta, Semih. “The effect of air pollution and climate change on sleep.” Archives of Neuropsychiatry, 2023. DOI.org (Crossref), https://doi.org/10.29399/npa.28523.
Costa, Renato D., et al. “A comparative study of situation awareness-based decision-making model reinforcement learning adaptive automation in evolving conditions.” IEEE Access, vol. 11, 2023, pp. 16166–82. DOI.org (Crossref), https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2023.3245055.
Gustin, J. (2020). Tornado preparedness. Professional Safety, 65(2), 51–52.https://library.capella.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/tornado preparedness/docview/2354857759/se-2
Illinois emergency management agency & office of homeland security. (2023). Illinois natural hazard mitigation plan. https://iemaohs.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/iemaohs/recovery/documents/plan-illmitigationplan.pdf
Kankakee County Health Department. (2020). Community health status assessment: Kankakee County, 2020. https://www.kankakeehealth.org/documents/about-3/community-health-needs-assessment-and-improvement-plan-1/mapp/2021-2/469-community-health-status-assessment-2/file
National Weather Service. (n.d.). 2024 tornado activity reached near-historic levels across the U.S. U.S. Department of Commerce.
Retrieved May 19, 2025, from https://www.weather.gov/oax/TipGuide
Top 10 chronic conditions affecting older adults. 30 May 2024, https://www.ncoa.org/article/the-top10-most-common-chronic-conditions-in-older-adults/.
U.S. Census Bureau. (n.d.). Age and Sex: Kankakee County, Illinois (Table S0101). American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates Subject Tables, 2023. Retrieved May 26, 2025, from https://data.census.gov/table/ACSST1Y2023.S0101?q=ages+for+Kankakee+County
U.S. Census Bureau. (n.d.). Kankakee County, Illinois. data.census.gov. Retrieved May 26, 2025, from https://data.census.gov/table?q=kankakee+county
U.S. Census Bureau. (n.d.). Kankakee county, Illinois: Health. Explore census data. Retrieved May 26, 2025, from
https://data.census.gov/profile/Kankakee_County,_Illinois?g=050XX00US17091#health
U.S. Census Bureau. (n.d.). QuickFacts: Kankakee County, Illinois. Retrieved May 26, 2025, from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/kankakeecountyillinois
Yap, Chee Kong, and Khalid Awadh Al-Mutairi. “High ecological health risks of potentially toxic metals in polluted drainage sediments: Is there a need for public concern during flash floods?” Water, vol. 14, no. 15, July 2022, p. 2316. DOI.org (Crossref), https://doi.org/10.3390/w14152316.
