Special Needs

Remember Family Members with Special Needs

People with special needs will require additional assistance at different points during a disaster.

Babies, young children, the physically challenged and the elderly need special consideration when developing your disaster preparedness plan.

Preparedness planning for people with special needs should identify the following:

• Individuals who require special attention


• Visually impaired who need information in a media accessible to them


• Hearing impaired who need special help to receive messages


• People who use wheelchairs, or are otherwise mobility impaired, and who need special rescue techniques and transportation that is accessible for them


• Shelters which must be accessible


• Mentally impaired who need training and constant reinforcement to learn steps to save themselves


• Post-disaster needs which must be met over an extended period of time

Meeting these needs does not have to be costly. Some can be solved by education, others by modest investments, but they should be addressed in a structured manner.

Children Are More Vulnerable Than Adults

Children are not little adults. Their developing minds and bodies place them at disproportionate risk in a number of specific ways:

• Children are particularly vulnerable to aerosolized biological or chemical agents because they breathe more times per minute than adults, meaning they would get relatively larger doses of the substance in the same period of time. Also, because some such agents, (e.g., sarin and chlorine) are heavier than air, they accumulate close to the ground - right in the breathing zone of children.


• Children are more vulnerable to agents that act on or through the skin because their skin is thinner and they have a larger surface-to-mass ratio than adults.


• Children are more vulnerable to the effects of agents that produce vomiting or diarrhea because they have less fluid reserve than adults, increasing the risk of rapid dehydration.


• Children have smaller circulating blood volumes than adults, so without rapid intervention, relatively small amounts of blood loss can quickly tip the physiologic scale from reversible shock to profound, irreversible shock or death.


• Children have significant developmental vulnerabilities not shared by adults. Infants, toddlers, and young children do not have the motor skills to escape from the site of a chemical, biological, or other terrorist incident. Even if they are able to walk, young children may not have the cognitive ability to figure out how to flee from danger or to follow directions from others.
  

Evacuation of people with special needs

Different disability groups have different problems when evacuation is required.

Persons who are blind can walk to an evacuation point, either unaided or with the help of a guide.

Deaf people and many who use wheelchairs can drive. This accounts for a significant part of the disabled population.

But there are persons who have mobility impairments that make it impossible to operate a car.

Even if a person can drive, he or she may be on the upper floor of a high rise that is without power, and must be evacuated.

For a significant number of people, the problem of evacuation is often just leaving the house. The safest and most convenient way to evacuate persons who use wheelchairs or other assisted devices is in modified vans.

Social service agencies and some individuals own such vehicles. Emergency managers should make contact with area social service agencies to request that inventories of such paratransit be maintained. Private citizens can also be contacted and asked to join emergency evacuation pools.

Be ready to evacuate

Have a plan for getting out of your home or building (ask your family or friends for assistance, if necessary).

Also, plan two evacuation routes because some roads may be closed or blocked in a disaster.

• Create a network of neighbors, relatives, friends, and coworkers to aid you in an emergency. Discuss your needs and make sure everyone knows how to operate necessary equipment.


• Discuss your needs with your employer.


• If you are mobility impaired and live or work in a high-rise building, have an escape chair.


• If you live in an apartment building, ask the management to mark accessible exits clearly and to make arrangements to help you leave the building.


• Keep specialized items ready, including extra wheelchair batteries, oxygen, catheters, medication, prescriptions, food for service animals, and any other items you might need.


• Be sure to make provisions for medications that require refrigeration.


• Keep a list of the type and model numbers of the medical devices you require.


• Wear medical alert tags or bracelets to identify your disability.


• Know the location and availability of more than one facility if you are dependent on a dialysis machine or other life-sustaining equipment or treatment.

Two critical points should not be overlooked

1. When the danger has passed, additional care must be taken in returning people
with special needs to their home environments. This re-entry may be difficult or uncertain.

2. In-place or at-home shelters present greater problems. There must be exceptional plans for rescue and recovery operations.

A person's physical impairments may very well be heightened as a result of massive damages in their household or even along the way to the shelter.

References and Additional Resources

The Youngest Victims:Disaster Preparedness to Meet Children's Needs
http://www.aap.org/advocacy/releases/disaster_preparedness.htm

Disaster Planning for Elderly and Disabled Populations
http://disaster.ifas.ufl.edu/PDFS/CHAP02/D02-09.PDF

Individuals with Special Needs Preparing and Planning
http://www.fema.gov/plan/prepare/specialplans.shtm

People with Disabilities and Other Access & Functional Needs
http://www.ready.gov/document/preparing-makes-sense-people-disabilities-and-special-needs

 

 

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