According to FEMA.gov, the state of Kentucky has had over 10 federally declared disasters since the beginning of 2020. These disasters have affected various regions of the state causing chaos.  The Climate Vulnerability Index suggests that these natural disasters will continue to occur in Kentucky, thus better preparation for stakeholders must take place.

To better prepare their workforce, the Kentucky Nutrition Education Program, (NEP) provided training for their leadership team that focused on disaster preparation while at work.  Kayla Watts, Agent on Special Assignment for Community Recovery and Resiliency provided the “Preparing for Disasters While at Work” lesson where the NEP leadership team learned ways to be disaster ready at work and home.

The Preparing for Disasters While at Work training was a half-day event. 24 program leaders and supervisors from across the state of Kentucky participated in this training where they networked and learned ways to prepare for disasters in the workplace.  Also, participants learned things they can do at home to be disaster ready.  Supervisors learned ways to discuss disaster preparedness with their staff so that staff members can also be better prepare for future disaster events.

Data provided by an online evaluation platform indicates that all NEP leadership team members learned something new and learned how to communicate this information with staff.  Data also shows that participants plan to implement at least one strategy for being better disaster prepared while at work and at home.

The NEP Preparing for Disasters While at Work lesson was a success. Not only do training participants feel better prepared for disasters, but they feel better prepared to communicate this information with staff in various counties around the state of Kentucky.