HAZARD VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT OF NURSING HOMES LOCATED IN THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES. (11th November 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lane, S; Sugg, M; Wilson, M
• Is Part Of: Innovation in aging. Volume 2(2018)Supplement 1
• Page Start: 536
• Page End: 536
• Publication Date: 2018-11-11
• Subjects: Aging -- Periodicals; Gerontology -- Periodicals; 612.67
• DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igy023.1980
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2399-5300

Abstract

Abstract: Hurricane Katrina brought to light and Hurricane Marie re-emphasized the deficiencies in nursing homes' ability to prepare for and respond to catastrophic events. Nursing home residents are especially vulnerable to the impacts of disasters due to their frailty, comorbid conditions, and need for assistance with activities of daily living. Evacuation or shelter-in-place decisions are complex and fraught with risks, yet must be made with the information and resources available at that specific point in time. A socio-ecological approach to vulnerability theory, with the integration of natural hazards analysis, GIScience, and facility-level aggregate resident acuity scores were used to determine the most vulnerable hazards for geo-specific nursing home locations in the southeastern United States. Socio-economic variables from the United State Census and natural disaster variables from other national data sets (e.g., FEMA, NOAA SLOSH, etc.) are integrated into a principal components analysis (PCA). The PCA results are joined to each census tract and then added together to obtain a census tract-level composite vulnerability index. Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Nursing Home Compare Data was used to create a nursing home-level acuity index, which was used to create maps depicting levels of nursing home vulnerability for each census tract. Understanding the risks attributable to location and resident acuity can guide planning and preparation efforts including collaboration with emergency services, hospitals, and resources suppliers, as well as evacuation or shelter-in-place decisions.