School of Aging Studies, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA.
Am J Alzheimers Dis Other Demen. 2012 Sep;27(6):406-12. doi: 10.1177/1533317512454709.
In response to the hurricane-related deaths of nursing home residents, there has been a steady increase in the number of facilities that evacuate under storm threat. This study examined the effects of evacuation during Hurricane Gustav on residents who were cognitively impaired.
Nursing homes in counties located in the path of Hurricane Gustav were identified. The Minimum Data Set resident assessment files were merged with the Centers for Medicare enrollment file to determine date of death for residents in identified facilities. Difference-in-differences analyses were conducted adjusting for residents' demographic characteristics and acuity.
The dataset included 21,255 residents living in 119 at risk nursing homes over three years of observation. Relative to the two years before the storm, there was a 2.8 percent increase in death at 30 days and a 3.9 percent increase in death at 90 days for residents with severe dementia who evacuated for Hurricane Gustav, controlling for resident demographics and acuity.
The findings of this research reveal the deleterious effects of evacuation on residents with severe dementia. Interventions need to be developed and tested to determine the best methods for protecting this at risk population when there are no other options than to evacuate the facility.
为应对与飓风相关的养老院居民死亡事件，越来越多的养老院在风暴威胁下进行疏散。本研究考察了在古斯塔夫飓风期间对认知障碍居民进行疏散的效果。
确定位于古斯塔夫飓风路径上的县的养老院。将最低数据居民评估档案与医疗保险中心登记档案合并，以确定确定设施中居民的死亡日期。采用差异-差异分析方法，对居民的人口统计学特征和严重性进行了调整。
该数据集包括三年内观察到的 119 家高危养老院的 21255 名居民。与风暴前两年相比，患有严重痴呆症并因古斯塔夫飓风而疏散的居民，在 30 天和 90 天的死亡率分别增加了 2.8%和 3.9%，同时控制了居民的人口统计学特征和严重性。
这项研究的结果揭示了疏散对患有严重痴呆症的居民的有害影响。需要开发和测试干预措施，以确定在别无选择只能疏散设施的情况下，保护这一高危人群的最佳方法。
