Evacuation of institutionalized and specialized populations

Technical Report · Thu Feb 01 04:00:00 EST 1990

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/7184620· OSTI ID:7184620

Vogt, B M ^[1]

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1. Tennessee Univ., Knoxville, TN (USA)

The purpose of this research was to assess the needs of organizations caring for institutional and specialized populations when faced with a threat or hazard requiring an evacuation. Individuals within specialized populations are unlike other victims of disaster because of their inherent dependency on organizational care givers and require different management strategies on the part of organizations and agencies in an evacuation. The research sought to identify those aspects of coping strategies that have been used successfully to manage an emergency evacuation. To identify special populations that have evacuated from institutions and similar facilities over a four-year period, a computerized search was conducted of media accounts describing such events. The search yielded a total of 1024 accounts from which four major subgroups were identified: nursing homes and related care facilities, hospitals, educational institutions, and correctional facilities. A miscellaneous group including housing for the elderly, apartments and other building complexes, workplaces and factories, public facilities, and places occupied by transient populations, such as transportation units and recreational facilities, could be used for future study. Among the factors found to affect evacuations were the extent of organizational resources (such as the number of staff or other individuals available at the time of the event), the type and number of clientele, and such community characteristics as population density. The study focuses on selected organizational characteristics of health care facilities (nursing homes and related care facilities and hospitals) which have recently experienced either a partial or complete evacuation of their facilities. 165 refs., 13 tabs.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)
• Sponsoring Organization: FEMA
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-84OR21400
• OSTI ID: 7184620
• Report Number(s): ORNL/Sub-7685/1-T23; ON: DE90007967
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
990100* -- Management
ACCIDENTS
ALARM SYSTEMS
BUILDINGS
DATA PROCESSING
DECISION MAKING
DEMOGRAPHY
DESIGN
DOCUMENTATION
EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES
EMERGENCY PLANS
ENGINEERING
EVACUATION
FIRE HAZARDS
FORECASTING
FREQUENCY ANALYSIS
FUNCTIONS
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
HOSPITALS
HUMAN FACTORS ENGINEERING
MANAGEMENT
MEASURING METHODS
MEDICAL ESTABLISHMENTS
PATIENTS
PLANNING
POPULATION DENSITY
POPULATION RELOCATION
PROCESSING
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
RESPONSE FUNCTIONS
RISK ASSESSMENT
SOCIOLOGY
STANDARDS
TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT
TRANSPORT
VARIATIONS