| Description: | On September 4, 2005 1,589 Hurricane Katrina evacuees from the New Orleans area arrived in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma State Department of Health conducted a rapid needs assessment of the evacuees housed at a National Guard training facility to determine the medical and social needs of the population in order to allocate resources appropriately. The results from this needs assessment highlight that the evacuees surveyed were predominantly black, of lower socio-economic status, and had substantial, pre-existing medical and mental health concerns. The evacuees experienced multiple emotional traumas, including witnessing grotesque scenes and the disruption of social systems, and had pre-existing psychopathologies that predisposed this population to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). When disaster populations are displaced, mental health and social service providers should be available immediately upon the arrival of the evacuees, and should be integrally coordinated with the relief response. Because the displaced population is at high risk for disaster-related mental health problems, it should be monitored closely for persons with PTSD. This displaced population will likely require a substantial re-establishment of financial, medical, and educational resources in new communities or upon their return to Louisiana. |
| Citation: | Rodrigues SR, Tocco JS, Mallonee S, Smithee L, Cathey T, Bradley K, “Rapid Needs Assessment of Hurricane Katrina Evacuees—Oklahoma, September 2005” Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. 2006. 21(6):390-395 |