Preparing for and Responding to Pandemic Influenza: Implications for People With Disabilities

State, local, tribal, and territorial emergency managers and public health officials must address the specific needs of people with disabilities in their pandemic influenza plans. Evidence from Hurricane Katrina indicated that this population was disproportionately affected by the storm and aftermat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inAmerican journal of public health (1971) Vol. 99; no. S2; pp. S294 - S300
Main Authors Campbell, Vincent A, Gilyard, Jamylle A, Sinclair, Lisa, Sternberg, Tom, Kailes, June I
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Am Public Health Assoc 01.10.2009
American Public Health Association
Subjects
Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Analytic Forums
Communication Barriers
Disabled Persons
Disease Outbreaks - prevention & control
Emergency preparedness
Health Services Accessibility
Humans
Immunization
Influenza
Influenza, Human - prevention & control
Middle Aged
Pandemics
People with disabilities
Public health
Residential Facilities
United States - epidemiology
Vulnerable Populations
Young Adult
United States
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Summary:State, local, tribal, and territorial emergency managers and public health officials must address the specific needs of people with disabilities in their pandemic influenza plans. Evidence from Hurricane Katrina indicated that this population was disproportionately affected by the storm and aftermath. People with disabilities, particularly those who require personal assistance and those who reside in congregate care facilities, may be at increased risk during an influenza pandemic because of disrupted care or the introduction of the virus by their caregivers. Emergency and public health planners must ensure that personal assistance agencies and congregate care operators make provisions for backup staffing and that those who provide critical care are given adequate antiviral drugs and vaccines as they become available.
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Peer Reviewed
Note. The findings and conclusions in this essay are the authors' and do not necessarily represent the views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
V. A. Campbell developed the concept and organization of the essay, supervised its overall preparation, and did most of the writing. J. A. Gilyard provided critical comment and participated in the writing and editing of the essay. L. Sinclair managed the references, participated in the writing, and provided material on policy implications of pandemic influenza planning. T. Sternberg was responsible for identifying data and conducting analyses for population estimates. J. I. Kailes provided critical comment from a disability advocacy perspective and participated in the writing and editing of the essay.
Contributors
ISSN:0090-0036
1541-0048
DOI:10.2105/AJPH.2009.162677