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Article: Applying the 'Disaster Lens' to Older Adults
- Article from:
- Generations
- Article date:
- December 1, 2007
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright American Society on Aging Winter 2007/2008. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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What are the lessons? Take a look at your own community
Katrina. Rita. September 11. The Chicago Heat Wave of 1995. The tsunami of 2005. All were disasters of extraordinary scope and brutality. Each had a profound impact upon older adults, their families, and the professionals charged with their care and rescue. Disasters, by definition, create an abundance of needs and a scarcity of resources. Tragically, disasters also amplify vulnerabilities and expose gaps in planning and service delivery. For example, older adults constituted only 15 percent of the population in New Orleans before Katrina, but after the event they accounted for 70 percent of the dead. During this unprecedented ...