scholarly journals Planning of a Health Emergency Disaster Risk Management Programme for a Chinese Ethnic Minority Community

Author(s):  
Greta Tam ◽  
Emily Chan ◽  
Sida Liu

Rural populations living in poverty are the most vulnerable to disaster. Despite this increased risk of recurrent disaster, previous disaster experience is not a good predictor for disaster preparedness in these populations. This was evidenced on 31 August 2012, when a major flood occurred in Sichuan, China. A health needs assessment carried out in December 2012 showed that residents of Hongyan village, a Yi-minority community in Sichuan lacked disaster preparedness. This indicated that measures were necessary to improve Health Emergency Disaster Risk Management (Health-EDRM) in the community. Nutbeam’s planning model for health promotion was used to guide the development of a Health-EDRM programme at Hongyan Village, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan. Relevant information was obtained from sources such as literature review, household surveys and stakeholder interviews. A team of stakeholders conducted an interactive workshop to train villagers on disaster preparedness in March 2014. Disaster kits and equipment for Oral Rehydration Solution preparation were handed out to villagers.

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (21) ◽  
pp. 9121
Author(s):  
Michal Titko ◽  
Jozef Ristvej

Regarding the prognoses of disasters in the future connected with climate change, disaster risk management (DRM) is becoming one of the decisive elements of sustainable development. The possibility of involving the general public to DRM implementation is, currently, a frequently discussed topic. In particular, population preparedness for the involvement of the public is questionable and, therefore, the understanding of the conditions that facilitate public preparedness for disasters is decisive. This article presents the results of research that investigates the factors affecting (1) the objective preparedness of the population, as well as (2) the subjective perception of our preparedness for disasters. The statistical analysis discovered that both sides of the public’s preparedness depended especially on their experience with disasters, the awareness of the possible risks and appropriate procedures to solve situations, and the economic potential of the households. The results emphasize the need to support the process of increasing the awareness of risks and the possible preventive procedures that can be carried out before disasters by the public, including the more economically vulnerable groups. In this area, the collaboration of the responsible authorities and general public is very desirable. Therefore, our study and its results can serve as a support for creating the DRM policies and sustainable development.


2006 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 142-147
Author(s):  
Earl Kessler

Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) was established in 1986. It was restructured in July 2003 to focus on specific technical areas: climate variability and change management, urban disaster risk management, public health in emergencies, building national and provincial disaster management systems, and community based disaster risk management (CBDRM), promoting regional cooperation, identifying disaster risk management (DRM) needs in the region and developing strategic solutions. The consolidation enables ADPC's teams to work more effectively with stakeholders and build cross-team inputs into their work. Multiple hazards under this new thematic approach are a key concept along with new areas of importance to DRM that include chemical, biological and radio-nuclear risks, heritage and disaster mitigation, and the role of domestic capital markets in financing improvements in the built environment to create a safer, more disaster-resilient world. The terms “risk management”, “risk reduction”, “vulnerability reduction”, “capacity building” and “mitigation” began replacing the reactive term “disaster management”, thus making pro-active DRM in Asia part of the development agenda that must deal with the growing variety and intensity of hazards. It was a shift from short-term, reactive, charity-driven responses to long-term, proactive, development initiatives. Making the right development choices requires coordinated efforts by committed leaders who have the political will and determination to include risk reduction measures in their policies and plans; a corporate sector that will prioritise risk issues and include them into their business plans; scientists who will provide the knowledge and understanding of current and new areas of risk reduction; committed non-government agencies that advocate for risk reduction; educators who are responsible for shaping the awareness of future generations; a mass media that has the power to influence and change behaviour; and informed citizens who make choices about the risks in their lives.


Author(s):  
Kevin K. C. Hung ◽  
Makiko K. MacDermot ◽  
Emily Y. Y. Chan ◽  
Sida Liu ◽  
Zhe Huang ◽  
...  

Disasters disproportionately impact poor and marginalised populations due to greater vulnerability induced by various risk determinants, such as compromised living conditions, language barriers, and limited resources for disaster risk management. Health Emergency and Disaster Risk Management (Health EDRM) emphasises a people- and community-centred approach for building stronger capacities in communities and countries since community members are often the first responders to health emergencies and should be central to effective risk management. A key action for promoting community disaster preparedness is the provision of Health EDRM education interventions. The Ethnic Minority Health Project (EHMP) has provided community-based Health EDRM education interventions in 16 ethnic minority-based villages in remote areas of China since 2009. It aims to enhance community disaster preparedness and resilience by improving health-risk literacy and self-help capacity at the individual and household levels. This case study outlines the first EHMP project in an ethnic minority-based community (Ma’an Qiao Village) in Sichuan Province, China. It highlights the key elements for planning and managing such a project and is a good demonstration of an effective Health EDRM workforce development project in rural communities. This report concludes with five recommendations for setting up a sustainable and effective Health EDRM education intervention in similar contexts.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 52-73
Author(s):  
Edward KURWAKUMIRE ◽  
◽  
Shelter KUZHAZHA ◽  
Paul MUCHECHETERE ◽  
◽  
...  

Disaster Risk Management requires up-to-date land information availed through the cadastre. Informal settlements are often located in disaster prone areas. Having up-to-date land information about these informal settlements is one step towards disaster preparedness and building community resilience in the highway towards sustainable development. This study designs conceptual models using unified modelling language (UML) for an informal cadastre for recording land information pertinent to disaster risk management based on a South African case study. The results demonstrate that land tenure relationships in informal settlements can be mapped using the Social Tenure Domain Model (STDM). The importance of disaster information is that it provides communities with information to tackle disasters and improve in their capabilities to handle them. With such information, the disaster risk can be minimised. This study is aligned to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 1 and 3. The linkage between spatial data, disaster resilience and the SDGs is explored.


2016 ◽  
Vol 86 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Festus Tongwa Aka ◽  
Gaston Wung Buh ◽  
Wilson Yatoh Fantong ◽  
Issa ◽  
Isabella Tem Zouh ◽  
...  

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-51
Author(s):  
Merja Rapeli ◽  
Helena Mussalo-Rauhamaa

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the level of disaster preparedness of institutional care and sheltered housing services provided by the private sector in Finland. Design/methodology/approach A web-based questionnaire was completed by businesses producing institutional care and sheltered housing services in Finland. They answered questions on disaster preparedness, impacts of recent hazards, measures taken during the hazards and connections to disaster risk management actors and relatives of their residents during the hazards. Findings The study showed that only 19 percent of the private service providers had a disaster preparedness plan, and only 11 percent reported that it was a requirement agreed on with the service purchaser. The size of the unit predicted only partly the differences in the level of preparedness. The major impacts of storms were on energy supply, leading to disruptions in the daily activities of the services. Practical implications The most vulnerable to disasters are people dependent on others, which include those receiving social services. Consequently, this study recommends that preparedness planning should be legally mandated requirement for all social service providers. In addition, the local governments’ service purchasers should include private services in their disaster preparedness activities. Originality/value Private businesses are increasingly involved in producing social services in Finland; hence, their preparedness to face hazards and connection with disaster risk management partners is vital. This study increases knowledge of private institutional care and sheltered housing services’ disaster preparedness, which has seldom been the focus of studies.


2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bárbara Montoro ◽  
Pedro Ferradas ◽  
Miguel Muñoz ◽  
Douglas Azabache ◽  
Orlando Chuquisengo ◽  
...  

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