We conducted a questionnaire survey of disaster medical assistance teams (DMATs) that were at the primary sites of destruction following the Great East Japan Earthquake and resulting tsunami. In Japan, DMATs are defined as mobile medical teams that receive professional training. These teams of medical doctors, nurses, and logistics personnel are activated during the acute phase of a disaster.
We sent questionnaires to 375 randomly selected DMATs in Japan that provided medical support just after the earthquake disaster and performed medical services during the acute and subacute phases after the earthquake. A letter and the questionnaire were sent to hospitals with a DMAT on October 18, 2012, and the questionnaires were collected from October 18 to November 10, 2012. The questionnaire was sent to all areas in Japan, including those affected and unaffected by the earthquake. In this disaster, DMATs performed 2 types of medical service. The first was acute-phase services in the disaster such as triage, initial treatment, and patient transport, and the second was medical care in the affected area including public health service.