Disaster Preparedness for Seniors

Disaster Preparedness for Seniors: A Comprehensive Guide for Healthcare Professionals outlines specific disaster scenarios for homebound, community, hospitalized, long term care, homeless and aged veterans. Chapters are written by a diverse group of authors, all of whom offer insight and expertise in training healthcare professionals in preparing for disasters. Topics include myths and realities of natural disasters and disaster preparedness for special populations of elders-the acute care elderly, the community-dwelling elderly, home based primary care senior veterans, the immune-compromised elderly, those with multiple and co morbid illnesses, the long-term care elderly, those elderly at the end of life and the effects of disaster on caregivers. A significant portion of the book is also devoted to training, competencies, literacy, cultural competency and resilience in disaster preparedness as well as the role of the academic medical center. The volume concludes with coverage of the management of behavioral, medical and psychological consequences of disasters. Disaster Preparedness for Seniors: A Comprehensive Guide for Healthcare Professionals is an important new volume and will serve as a guide for the development of programs, policies and procedures for evacuation of seniors during various disaster scenarios.

Charles A. Cefalu, MD, MS, is Chief of the Section of Geriatric Medicine for the Medical Center of Louisiana and Clinical Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine. He graduated from LSU School of Medicine-New Orleans in 1974 and completed a residency in Family Medicine at Earl K. Long Hospital in Baton Rouge, LA, where he joined the faculty as an Instructor. He later served as Assistant Professor and Assistant Director of the program, and through February 1981, he was Residency Director of the program.