Converting Grief into Strength: Why Nursing Must Lead from Response to Recovery

Abstract

Floods, storms, heatwaves, wildfires, and landslides are increasingly reshaping daily life, not only through mortality and economic damage but also through the sustained erosion of quality of life (QoL). Disasters destabilize chronic disease management, increase psychological distress, disrupt education and livelihoods, and drive displacement, insecurity, and loss of dignity. The World Meteorological Organization has highlighted the “massive economic and social disturbances” linked to extreme weather in its State of the Global Climate 2024 report (1). The Lancet Countdown 2025 likewise shows that climate-related health risks continue to intensify faster than adaptation and protection efforts (2). In this context, nursing should not be positioned as a supporting actor in disasters, but as a central system of prevention, continuity, and recovery. World Health Organization ́s (WHO) 2025 fact sheet notes that nurses and midwives deliver care in emergencies and contribute to health-system sustainability (3). The key question, therefore, is not whether nurses are “involved,” but whether disaster governance equips and embeds nursing to protect QoL throughout the disaster cycle.