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Rural Older Adults in Disasters: A Study of Recovery From Hurricane Michael

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 October 2021

Patricia A. Fletcher Open the ORCID record for Patricia A. Fletcher [Opens in a new window] ,
Dreamal L. Worthen ,
Mary Helen McSweeney-Feld ,
Allison Gibson ,
Dominika Seblova ,
Lisandra Pagán ,
M. Isabela Troya ,
Mei Lan Fang ,
Brenda Owusu  and
Charlene Lane
...Show all authors
Patricia A. Fletcher*
Affiliation:
Federal Emergency Management Agency, Interagency Coordination Division, Recovery Directorate, Washington, DC, USA
Dreamal L. Worthen
Affiliation:
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Cooperative Extension, Tallahassee, FL, USA
Mary Helen McSweeney-Feld
Affiliation:
Towson University, Interprofessional Health Studies, Towson, MD, USA
Allison Gibson
Affiliation:
University of Kentucky, Social Work, Lexington, KY, USA
Dominika Seblova
Affiliation:
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain, Department of Neurology, New York, NY, USA
Lisandra Pagán
Affiliation:
Federal Emergency Management Agency, Interagency Coordination Division, Recovery Directorate, Washington, DC, USA
M. Isabela Troya
Affiliation:
University College Cork, School of Public Health National Suicide Research Foundation WHO Collaborating Centre for Surveillance and Research in Suicide Prevention, Cork, Ireland
Mei Lan Fang
Affiliation:
University of Dundee, School of Nursing & Health Sciences Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom
Brenda Owusu
Affiliation:
University of Miami, School of Nursing and Health Studies, Coral Gables, FL, USA
Charlene Lane
Affiliation:
Messiah College, Social Work, Mechanicsburg, PA, USA
Mineko Wada
Affiliation:
Adler University - Vancouver, Public Policy and Administration, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Erin R. Harrell
Affiliation:
The University of Alabama System, Psychology, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA
Aline Viana
Affiliation:
Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, National School of Public Health – RJ/BR, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
*
Corresponding author: Patricia Fletcher, Email: [email protected].
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Abstract

Objective:

This study aims for a greater understanding of how older adults (age 65 and older) in Jackson County, Florida, are prepared for and cope with the effects of a natural disaster.

Methods:

A multidisciplinary, international research team developed a survey examining: (1) resources available to individuals aged 65+ in rural communities for preparing for a disaster; (2) challenges they face when experiencing a disaster; and (3) their physical, social, emotional, and financial needs when it strikes. The survey was administered with older adults (65+) in Jackson County, Florida, following Hurricane Michael in 2018. The descriptive, multivariate logistic, and linear regression analyses were performed to examine the relationship between respondents’ demographic information and needs, concerns, and consequences of disaster.

Results:

Results indicated (n = 139) rural community-dwelling older adults rely on social support, community organizations, and trusted disaster relief agencies to prepare for and recover from disaster-related events.

Conclusions:

Such findings can be used to inform the development of new interventions, programs, policies, practices, and tools for emergency management and social service agencies to improve disaster preparedness and resiliency among older populations in rural communities.

Keywords

older adultsdisaster preparednesspublic healthaging in placerural populationemergency preparedness
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 16 , Issue 6 , December 2022 , pp. 2602 - 2606
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc.

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