Geriatric Mental Health Disaster and Emergency Preparedness

Chapter 5 National and Cross-National Models of Geriatric Disaster 91
municipal, provincial, and federal levels in Canada, it is important to recognize
the groundwork that has already been laid with respect to older
persons. There is a growing legacy of leadership on this issue by the Public
Health Agency of Canada (Public Health Agency of Canada [PHAC], February
2008, March 2008), which began at the Presidential Symposium on
the 2004 Tsunami and Older People convened by Simon Fraser University
professor Gloria Gutman, outgoing president of the International Association
of Gerontology and Geriatrics at the June 2005 International Association
of Gerontology and Geriatrics (IAGG) World Congress. The
symposium confirmed that few programs developed by humanitarian
agencies are designed to specifically target older persons. Subsequent to
the IAGG congress, PHAC hosted two international meetings, including
one for participants attending the White House Conference on Aging in
December 2005, which resulted in a commitment to collaborate internationally.
A working meeting of disaster and emergency experts held in Toronto
in February 2006 identified the need for an international workshop.
In 2007, the government of Canada and the government of Manitoba,
in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), hosted the
International Workshop on Seniors and Emergency Preparedness in Winnipeg,
Manitoba, Canada. A synthesis of research on recent Canadian disasters
was among the resources commissioned for this event (Gutman,
2007). This workshop brought together over 100 experts from around the
world to identify priorities to better address older persons’ needs and utilize
older persons’ capacities as a component of emergency management.
The report on this event, Building a Global Framework to Address the
Needs and Contributions of Older People in Emergencies, was presented
to the United Nations Commission for Social Development in February
2008 (PHAC, February 2008). Following the workshop, national and international
steering committees and working groups were created to address
key issues. The Second International Workshop on Seniors and
Emergency Preparedness was held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, a year
later in March 2008 (PHAC, March 2008) with the goals of sharing tools,
information, and resources; identifying gaps; discussing effective communication
strategies; strengthening networks/partnerships; and setting
in motion activities for ongoing collaborative work.
The Division of Aging and Seniors (DAS) at PHAC serves as a central
coordinating body for the three working groups that continue to collaborate
on the development and dissemination of resources, promising
practices, and guidelines as well as knowledge exchange, policy, and program
development (P. Gorr, PHAC, personal communication, December