Brown Lisa M, Hyer Kathryn, Polivka-West LuMarie
Department of Aging and Mental Health, Louis de Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida, 13301 Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, 1441 Tampa, FL 33612-3899,
Behav Sci Law. 2007;25(5):655-75. doi: 10.1002/bsl.785.
In 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated several Gulf Coast states and caused many deaths. The hurricane- related deaths of 70 nursing home residents--34 believed drowned in St. Rita's Nursing Home in Louisiana and 36 from 12 other nursing homes--highlighted problems associated with poorly developed and executed disaster plans, uninformed evacuation decision-making, and generally inadequate response by providers and first responders (DHHS, 2006; Hyer, Brown, Berman, & Polivka-West, 2006). Such loss of human life perhaps could have been prevented and certainly lessened if, prior to the hurricanes, policies, regulations, and laws had been enacted, executable disaster guidelines been available, vendor contracts been honored, and sufficient planning taken place. This article discusses applicable federal and state laws and regulations that govern disaster preparedness with a particular focus on nursing homes. It highlights gaps in these laws and makes suggestions regarding future disaster planning.
2005年，卡特里娜飓风和丽塔飓风重创了墨西哥湾沿岸的几个州，造成众多人员死亡。70名疗养院居民因飓风丧生——据信，路易斯安那州圣丽塔疗养院有34人溺水身亡，另有12家疗养院的36人死亡——这凸显了灾难预案制定不完善、执行不力、疏散决策缺乏信息依据以及供应商和急救人员总体应对不足等问题（美国卫生与公众服务部，2006年；海尔、布朗、伯曼和波利夫卡-韦斯特，2006年）。如果在飓风来临之前就制定并颁布政策、法规和法律，提供可执行的灾难指南，履行供应商合同，并进行充分的规划，或许可以避免这种人员生命损失，至少能减少损失。本文讨论了适用于灾难准备工作的联邦和州法律法规，特别关注疗养院。文中强调了这些法律存在的漏洞，并就未来的灾难规划提出了建议。
