Journal of Rescue and Relief (امداد و نجات)

INTRODUCTION: The present article aimed to study field observations of the 2017 Sefid Sang earthquake, Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran, measuring 6 on the Richter scale with the approach of assessing the behaviors and performing a short analysis on the rescue and relief operations. METHODS: This qualitative study has followed the conceptual analysis approach to research. The sample population was selected with purposive sampling technique from the affected villages of Brashak, Karghash Olya, Drakht Bid, Kelate Menar, Kelate Hajikar, Kharzar, and Chah Mazar to study the behavior and knowledge of the affected people. A goal-based sampling was also applied among the operational managers who were directly engaged in the relief and rescue operations. This research benefited the focus group’s viewpoints. The necessary data were gathered from the answers given to the open questions. The process of research data analysis was in the light of phases proposed by Granheim and Lanman. FINDINGS: The results of this study showed that the disaster preparedness index coefficient among the residents of affected and surrounding villages was low which seriously required enhancement. It was also found out the affected people lacked necessary awareness about general training on the subject of disaster resiliency. Although Red Crescent’s role of disaster response in the context of implementation had been effective, it was found that its other roles of advocacy and support culd be more effective than its implementation role.

INTRODUCTION: Mental health which is recognized as one of the leading health indicators and a key component of a healthy life can be influenced by multiple factors. METHODS: The current study aimed to develop a mobile self-regulatory concepts training program and determine its effectiveness on the mental health of Red Crescent Society relief workers in Yazd. This quasi-experimental applied research was conducted based on a control group pretest-posttest design. The statistical population of the study included all 500 Red Crescent aid workers in Yazd in 2019, out of whom 30 cases were selected by convenience sampling method and were randomly assigned to two groups of experimental and control (n=15). The General Health Questionnaire developed by Goldberg (1972) was used for data collection. The experimental group received 11 60-minute sessions of mobile self-regulatory training. FINDINGS: Based on the results, mobile self-regulatory concepts training was effective in the mental health of Red Crescent Society aid workers in Yazd. CONCLUSION: As evidenced by the obtained results, mobile self-regulatory training improves physical symptoms, anxiety and insomnia, social dysfunction, and depression

INTRODUCTION: Social participation has proved to be effective in the establishment and development of civil societies, assuming great importance in this regard. The Red Crescent Society, as the largest non-governmental organization (NGO) in the country and the oldest NGO in the world, is engaged in humanitarian activities at both national and international levels through attracting and retaining volunteers and public participation. METHODS: The present practical quantitative cross-sectional field study aimed to investigate the relationship between religiosity and citizens' voluntary participation in the activities of the Red Crescent Society. The statistical population included all volunteers participating in the activities of the Isfahan Red Crescent Society, out of whom 384 cases were selected as the sample. The data were analyzed using SPSS software and structural equation modeling in SmartPLS software. FINDINGS: It can be seen that religiosity in various dimensions is one of the important sources of increasing the voluntary participation of citizens, which increases the various dimensions of voluntary participation. In this regard, it can be said that Islam especially Shia religion due to its collective nature of abundance can play a very important role in increasing the voluntary participation of citizens and the Red Crescent Society, as a non-profit public institution, can also use this capacity to advance its transcendent goals. CONCLUSION: As evidenced by the obtained results, there was a positive and significant relationship between religiosity dimensions (belief, experience, practice, knowledge, and consequences) and voluntary participation in the activities of the Red Crescent Society; therefore, all research hypotheses were confirmed. Furthermore, based on the results of the structural equation model (SmartPLS), religiosity had a moderate effect on voluntary participation in the activities of the Red Crescent Society.

INTRODUCTION: In recent years, competency has emerged as a major issue which plays a significant role in responding to challenges facing organizational management in a rapidly changing environment. In this regard, the competency-based approach puts emphasis on individuals and highlights the importance of human resources to achieve organizational goals. The Red Crescent Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran is a human-centered organization; that is to say, most of the services provided to the target communities rely on the capabilities of human resources. Therefore, the current study aimed to design a model for the development of key human resource competencies in the Red Crescent Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran. METHODS: This applied qualitative study was conducted based on an exploratory approach and used mixed-type data. Data collection was performed in two qualitative and quantitative phases. The first phase was conducted based on grounded theory, while a quantitative research method was used in the next phase. The statistical population of the study in the qualitative section included managers and human resource experts of the Red Crescent Society, as well as university professors and experts, who were selected using purposive sampling and were interviewed until saturation data (25 interviews). The statistical population of the quantitative section included 8,451 managers and employees of the Red Crescent Society of all provinces of Iran. The sample size was calculated at 361 cases using Krejcie and Morgan sample size determination table. FINDINGS: In the present study, among the seven principles of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, the five principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, and voluntary service were regarded as infrastructure requirements for the development of human resource competencies and were axially coded in causal conditions. Thereafter, the relationship between these principles and human resources competencies in the Red Crescent Society was determined using PLS software. CONCLUSION: As evidenced by the obtained results, the employment of appropriate strategies for evaluating and developing key human resource competencies resulted in the following consequences: human resource efficiency, provision of desirable social services, community health improvement, enhancement of human values, reinforcement of trust and public participation, and improvement of the financial capacity of the Red Crescent Society. The results indicated that competency development among Red Crescent staff is positively and significantly correlated with the principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence.

INTRODUCTION: The development and application of new firefighting technologies are inevitable considering an increase in the number of smart technologies, the widespread use of technologies in various industries and all domains of human societies, utilization of polymeric materials in the tools and infrastructure of societies, as well as the production of new structures with diverse uses, and their aggregation together. The occurrence of massive disasters due to the lack of development and application of safety along with technology is the result of neglecting safety in the development process and social progress. This study aimed to investigate the factors influencing the implementation of smart fire management using the fuzzy approach. METHODS: This descriptive-analytical study was designed based on an applied research method. Initially, all factors influencing the implementation of smart fire management were extracted from the literature. They were then evaluated based on experts and university professors' opinions. Following that, three types of questionnaires were distributed among the experts. The study population included 15 university experts and managers in the Fire Organization in Yazd, Iran. FINDINGS: The results showed that "command and operations", "integration of smart firefighting systems", "clear business plan and vision", "effective change management", "equipment", "cooperation between the business association and information technology" and "management support" obtained positive D-R and were considered causes. CONCLUSION: The "integration of smart firefighting systems" was regarded as the most effective factor, followed by "organizational resource planning", "exchange system", and "communication system" that ensure the success of these systems. This improves information flow and decision-making process, especially in a crisis.

INTRODUCTION: Knowledge is a powerful resource to help governments, organizations, and communities to plan and improve their performance in mitigating the harmful effects of disasters. There is a crucial need for knowledge in all phases of disaster risk management, namely prevention, risk reduction, preparedness, as well as response and recovery. The present study aimed to assess the organizational, discourse, and metaphorical challenges and knowledge management improvement policies in disaster risk management in Iran. METHODS: This qualitative study was conducted in Iran in 2016. The needed data were collected through in-depth interviews with 21 experts and policymakers and analyzed by content analysis method. FINDINGS: Based on the obtained results, the following five categories were extracted: 1. current problems, 2. organizational and structural problems, 3. discourse level, 4. level of metaphors, and 5. knowledge management improvement policies in the disaster response phase in Iran.

INTRODUCTION: Resilience is considered a way of strengthening societies using their capacities which can be defined as the ability of systems to adapt to changes without collapsing at the incidence of disasters. To understand resilience and the way it is analyzed at the community level, it is necessary to study the society's current condition and policies, as well as the measures adopted to reduce risk and how the risks in society are dealt with. This study aimed to assess the resilience of urban communities in the face of an earthquake. METHODS: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted using a questionnaire to collect the required data in Semnan, Iran, in 2019. The statistical population of this study (n=384) consisted of the citizens of Semnan selected using the Cochran formula and random sampling method. The collected data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 23) using mean and percentage for descriptive analysis and Pearson correlation coefficient and one-sample t-test for inferential statistical tests. FINDINGS: Based on the results, the sociocultural, infrastructural-physical, economic, and institutional-organizational dimensions showed the current condition of resilience in Semnan with the mean scores obtained as 2.59, 3.05, 2.17, and 2.56, respectively. It was also revealed that resilience had a significant relationship with age, education, income, accommodation ownership, employment, calculated by the Pearson correlation coefficient (P-value=0.99). CONCLUSION: The mean scores and significance level of the economic resilience in Semnan revealed that this city lacked economic resilience. In this regard, it can be noted that residents' lack of skills in other fields and jobs, lack of possessions outside the city, the vulnerability of residents' properties and assets, level of economic poverty in the city, citizens' limited financial ability to participate economically, and low level of household savings to compensate for earthquake damage have made returning to pre-crisis conditions highly difficult for citizens, and consequently, they cannot be economically resilient.

INTRODUCTION: Efficiency is one of the basic measures of organizational performance, and in general, refers to the degree or quality of the achievement of the desired goals. This study aimed to investigate the efficiency of Red Crescent population branches in Gilan province and rank them based on the data envelopment analysis model. METHODS: This research was applied in terms of purpose and documentary in terms of implementation. For the purposes of the study, 16 branches of the Red Crescent Society in Gilan province were analyzed with GAMS software (version 24) in 2018. In this research, the input-oriented Banker, Charnes, and Cooper model was used as one of the basic models of data envelopment analysis to measure the relative efficiency of 16 branches of the Red Crescent Society in Gilan province. Afterward, the Anderson-Peterson super-efficiency model was used to rank the efficient units. FINDINGS: Based on the findings, six branches, namely Astara, Rasht, Bandar Anzali, Tallish, Lahijan, and Sowme’eh Sara, had an efficiency score of one. In other words, they were recognized as efficient branches and could provide solutions and models as reference branches for inefficient branches to help them reach the efficiency limit. Afterward, the Anderson-Peterson super-efficiency model was used to rank the efficient units. According to this model, the efficiency scores of the studied units were more than one and the Rasht branch had the highest efficiency. CONCLUSION: The results provide researchers as well as branch managers and staff with suggestions that can help them make better decisions. An important point to keep in mind is that in order to increase the efficiency of a branch, it is necessary to reduce input costs and increase outputs based on reference branches. Due to the fact that this research uses an input-oriented approach, its purpose is to increase the indicators that enhance the efficiency of branches.