Geriatric Mental Health Disaster and Emergency Preparedness

72 Geriatric Mental Health Disaster and Emergency Preparedness
damage, timing of travel, and estimated duration are well documented.
Human-initiated terrorist attacks, in contrast, have a very short lifetime
and are quantified in terms of the precipitating event.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF RESPONSE PLANS
A common sequence of events surrounding a disaster can be seen in recent
large-scale disasters ranging from the September 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks; Hurricane Katrina; the 2004 tsunami in Phuket, Thailand; and
the 2007 shootings at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
Three distinct phases have been identified. Disaster response planners utilize
these phases, which are the basis for any successful disaster preparedness
plan, to determine the timing and nature of response actions. Phase I
is the preparedness/readiness phase. Activities in this phase involve the
identification of resources, the identification of training requirements, and
the practicing and evaluation of plan effectiveness. Phase II is the actual response
to a disaster. This is when the plans are put into effect. Phase III
is the process of recovery and implementation evaluation. Recovery includes
not only physical activities, such as rebuilding homes, but also emotional
and physical recovery for all who have been affected. Phase III is
often longer than initially anticipated.
When a disaster strikes, by definition it is likely to compromise a regional
area (Gaynard, 2009). Because a disaster will indiscriminately affect
all individuals and services within the region, it is likely to take time for
agencies and rescue workers to organize, mobilize, and arrive in the region
to begin their work. Depending on the nature and scope of the event, rescuers
and emergency management systems may be initially overwhelmed.
Disaster communication may be compromised, and road, rail, and air transportation
may be limited or curtailed. Thus, immediately following the
event, victims within the affected areas typically are on their own. This period
of required self-sufficiency can be an hour or two or may be measured
in terms of days. Ice storms during the winter of 2008–2009 left many
in the mid-South without power for several weeks, and downed trees and
power lines made immediate access to many areas impossible for rescue
and recovery services.
It can be frustrating for victims, but rescuers and responders are limited
in the services they can provide. Power companies moving in after an
ice storm will work first to restore power to public health and safety entities:
emergency management offices, hospitals, nursing homes, and so