Disaster Preparedness for Seniors: A Comprehensive Guide for Healthcare Professionals

by Charles A. Cefalu (Editor)

Overview

Disaster Preparedness for Seniors: A Comprehensive Guide for Healthcare Professionals outlines specific disaster scenarios for homebound, community, hospitalized, long term care, homeless and aged veterans. Chapters are written by a diverse group of authors, all of whom offer insight and expertise in training healthcare professionals in preparing for disasters. Topics include myths and realities of natural disasters and disaster preparedness for special populations of elders-the acute care elderly, the community-dwelling elderly, home based primary care senior veterans, the immune-compromised elderly, those with multiple and co morbid illnesses, the long-term care elderly, those elderly at the end of life and the effects of disaster on caregivers. A significant portion of the book is also devoted to training, competencies, literacy, cultural competency and resilience in disaster preparedness as well as the role of the academic medical center. The volume concludes with coverage of the management of behavioral, medical and psychological consequences of disasters. Disaster Preparedness for Seniors: A Comprehensive Guide for Healthcare Professionals is an important new volume and will serve as a guide for the development of programs, policies and procedures for evacuation of seniors during various disaster scenarios.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781493906659
Publisher:	Springer-Verlag New York, LLC
Publication date:	08/21/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	361
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Charles A. Cefalu, MD, MS, is Chief of the Section of Geriatric Medicine for the Medical Center of Louisiana and Clinical Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine. He graduated from LSU School of Medicine-New Orleans in 1974 and completed a residency in Family Medicine at Earl K. Long Hospital in Baton Rouge, LA, where he joined the faculty as an Instructor. He later served as Assistant Professor and Assistant Director of the program, and through February 1981, he was Residency Director of the program.

Table of Contents

​ 1. Emergency Preparedness for the Home-bound Elderly.- 2. The Role of the Academic Medical Center in Disaster Preparedness.- 3. The Evolution of Geriatric Disaster Preparedness for Medicine and Health Science Training.- 4. Mental Health Consequences of Disaster Exposure in Older Adults.- 5. Triaging Acute Care Patients During Disaster   6. Long Term Care Facilities and Technology.- 7. Gerotechnology in Disaster Preparedness to Aide Seniors and Those who Care for Them.- 8. Management of the Immunocompromised Older Adult in a Disaster.- 9. Disaster Preparedness and Long Term Care Facilities (Nursing Homes and ALFs).- 10. Other Resources - Red Cross, CDC, FEMA.- 11. Balancing Professional Versus Personal Issues in a Disaster.

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Nicky Martin, MPA, BS, LNHA (University of Missouri)
Description: This book is a model of the importance of disaster preparedness for the elderly. The contributors provide real-life accounts of successes and failures of disaster preparedness for the aged population.
Purpose: The authors provide insights and information that enable healthcare professionals who care for the elderly to better understand, prepare for, and cope with natural disasters. The wide range of topics and resources provide healthcare professionals with the tools necessary to improve their disaster preparedness skills and increase their ability to navigate the necessary actions (and reactions) during a disaster.
Audience: The book presents essential guidelines for age-appropriate preparedness and response, sample policies for healthcare providers, and resources that are available before, during, and after a disaster. Tables and step-by-step outlines clearly identify how healthcare professionals can prepare for disasters. This book will provide geriatric healthcare professionals with guidance for policy development and the means to test and implement disaster preparedness policies.
Features: It covers the special populations of elders, and provides examples relating to why each population is different and why planning for each population is important. The topics range from triage to seniors living during war and civil strife. Natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 and the Joplin Tornado in May 2011 exemplify the need and urgency for disaster preparedness among healthcare facilities and professionals.
Assessment: The book succeeds in providing well-organized information, resources, policy samples, and training programs to geriatric healthcare providers across all levels of the care continuum and during all stages of a disaster. It is a useful resource to educate any healthcare professional on the importance of disaster preparedness for the elderly population.

Doody's Review Service

From the book reviews:

“This book is a model of the importance of disaster preparedness for the elderly. … The book succeeds in providing well-organized information, resources, policy samples, and training programs to geriatric healthcare providers across all levels of the care continuum and during all stages of a disaster. It is a useful resource to educate any healthcare professional on the importance of disaster preparedness for the elderly population.” (Carolyn N. Martin, Doody’s Book Reviews, October, 2014)

From the Publisher