- People with disabilities tend to have lower incomes, are more likely to be uninsured, and live in older buildings 
- Additionally, many live alone; this suggests physical aid may be needed but the individual would not have immediate access to it

University of Virginia, Charlottesville

While people who hold vulnerable identities are more likely to experience hardship, the highest levels of distress are felt by people whose identities intersect with other marginalized identities such as class, race, gender, and disability status. Not many people realize that this vulnerability extends to natural disasters primarily as a result of poverty, structural disadvantage, and social exclusion. 

The Effects of Disaster on the Mental Health of Individuals with Disabilities

Stough, L. M. (2009). The Effects of Disaster on the Mental Health of Individuals with Disabilities. Mental Health and Disasters, 264–276. https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9780511730030.015 

The Effects of Disaster on the Mental Health of Individuals with Disabilities Reference

- Demographic factors greatly influence who is at risk of natural disasters, how they prepare, and the type of aid response received
- Many physical injuries and fatalities happen to those who make less money, are chronically ill, are elderly, or do not speak the main language(s) of the country they are in 
- The main influence on natural disaster effect is poverty, and better health and education help decrease risk 
- Individuals with disabilities, who tend to have lower socioeconomic status, are more likely to live in housing that is vulnerable should a disaster occur

Disasters and At Risk Populations

Living Situation Risks

- There was a dramatic increase in research following Hurricane Katrina
- The Special Needs Assessment for Katrina Evacuees (SNAKE), commissioned by the National Organization on Disability investigated the outcomes of disabled individuals following the disaster
- Researchers found many barriers and inequalities when it came to the quality of care post - Katrina, mainly in homeless shelters
- For example, many elderly with physical and health conditions drowned following improper upkeep of facilities 

An Increased Interest in the Effect of Disaster on Disabled Individuals

- CDC estimates 21.1 million people living in the United States have some form of a physical impairment
- The Nobody Left Behind project developed to study the impact of natural disasters on people with physical disabilities
- Of the 30 counties surveyed, only 27% had completed training on how to assist those with physical impairments and 20% had detailed guidelines on how to assist those individuals - 67% did not plan on amending their training and guidelines

Mobility Disabilities

- Sensory disabilities include visually impairment, blindness (about 3% of the U.S. population),and auditory impairment, deafness (about 2.4% of the U.S. population)
- There is not a lot of information regarding individuals with sensory disabilities, but a woman described her experience in an autobiography - she is in the deaf community and a researcher
- One of the major issues she noted was communication: many news channels, radio announcements, and other forms of media communication do not have good translator or interpreter options

Sensory Disabilities 

- About 15-20% of the population have some form of a cognitive disability 
- Research shows that typical emergency signals (sirens, flashing lights, and emergency personal) triggered a strong distress response rather than aid in preparing for an oncoming disaster in individuals with cognitive disabilities 
- Distress ratings were correlated negatively with level of independence, age, and positive response to strangers 
- In one study, when later asked about how healed individuals felt following a disaster, not one said they felt healed and often mentioned psychological impacts despite the question not being phrased to prompt this response  

Cognitive Disabilities

- Of the few studies conducted on those with a diagnosed mental illness and those whose mental illness classified as a disability, none found any increase in symptomatology following a disaster
- This suggests that psychological and psychiatric treatment can be a protective factor against the mental strain of a natural disaster
- However, PTSD is more likely to develop in these individuals than in individuals without pre-existing conditions following a natural disaster

Mental Health Disabilities

The most researched area of the effects of natural disasters on individuals with disabilities is psychiatric disorders. The research shows that people with disabilities are treated differently post-disaster than their nondisabled peers, have unequal access to information, and experience additional barriers to recovery. Much less clear are the psychological impacts of disaster on individuals with disabilities. Researchers have ignored looking into the psychological effects of disaster on individuals with intellectual, physical, or sensory impairments.

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