| Author(s): | Keith Elder; Sudha Xirasagar; Nancy Miller; Shelly Ann Bowen; Saundra Glover; Crystal Piper |
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| Year: |
2007 |
| Available at: | www.ajph.org/cgi/content/abstract/97/Supplement_1/S124 (report broken link)
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| Description: | In this study, researchers conducted 6 focus groups with 53 African Americans from New Orleans who were evacuated to Columbia, SC, within 2 months of Hurricane Katrina. The major themes identified related to participants’ decisions to not evacuate were as follows: (1) perceived susceptibility, including optimism about the outcome because of riding out past hurricanes at home and religious faith; (2) perceived severity of the hurricane because of inconsistent evacuation orders; (3) barriers because of financial constraints and neighborhood crime; and (4) perceived racism and inequities. Federal, state, and local government disaster preparedness plans should specify criteria for timely evacuation orders, needed resources, and their allocation (including a decentralized distribution system for cash or vouchers for gas and incidentals during evacuation) and culturally sensitive logistical planning for the evacuation of minority, low-income, and underserved communities. Perceptions of racism and inequities warrant further investigation. |
| Language(s): | English |
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| Communities: | Black or African American |
| Subtopic: | Culturally Competent Care Message Content Emergency Decision Making Phase 1 - Risk Perception Phase 3 - Warning |
| Target Audience: | Emergency Planners & Managers; Public Health Professionals; Researchers; Government; Policymakers |
| Resource Type: | Qualitative Study Journal Article |
| Citation: | Elder K, Xirasagar S, Miller N, Bowen SA, Glover S, Piper C, “African Americans' decisions not to evacuate New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina: A qualitative study,” American Journal of Public Health97, Supplemental 1 (2007): S124-129. |
| Contact Info: | Keith Elder
University of South Carolina Arnold School of Public Health
800 Sumter St, Room 116
Columbia, SC 29208
E-mail: kelder@gwm.sc.edu |