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. 2020;50(2):263-278.
doi: 10.1080/03036758.2020.1722186. Epub 2020 Feb 4.

Disaster Resilience in Aging Populations: Lessons from the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake & Tsunami

Ichiro Kawachi  1 , Jun Aida  2 , Hiroyuki Hikichi  1 , Katsunori Kondo  3
Affiliations

Disaster Resilience in Aging Populations: Lessons from the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake & Tsunami

Ichiro Kawachi et al. J R Soc N Z. 2020.

Abstract

Recovery after major disaster poses a unique set of challenges for the older population, including disruption of medical care for pre-existing conditions, functional limitations that impede recovery, and social isolation following involuntary resettlement. In this review, we summarize the lessons about disaster resilience that have been learned (so far) from a unique ongoing field study based in a community that was affected by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. In the Iwanuma Study, baseline information about the health status and living conditions of older residents was collected seven months before the disaster. A follow-up survey was conducted 2.5 years after the disaster, allowing us investigate the risk and protective factors for a range of disaster-related health sequelae, including mental illness and cognitive disability. A consistent finding to emerge from our studies is the critical role of social connections (the "social capital" of a community) in protecting against the deleterious after-effects of psychological trauma and involuntary resettlement following the disaster. In contrast to the emphasis on investing in material infrastructure to prepare for disasters, a review of our studies suggests that repairing (or at least preserving) the social fabric of people's lives is a crucial ingredient in disaster resilience.

Keywords: Disaster resilience; aging; dementia; social capital.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Map of inundated area in Iwanuma city, Japan.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Increase in level of dementia symptoms according to severity of housing damage.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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