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2015

WKC Forum report: Creating resilient society and community for ageing populations in disaster situations

In commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, the WHO Kobe Centre, in collaboration with the University of Hyogo, organized an open public forum on “Creating resilient society and community for ageing populations in disaster situations” in Kobe on 20 February 2015 and 43 audiences participated in the event.

In the Forum, five experts presented their knowledge, research outcomes, and suggestions from various perspectives including nursing and disaster management, social welfare for older populations, psychology, and community healthcare to explore major components of resilient society/community with ageing population. The presentations were based on the experts’ experiences and interaction with older populations.

During the last 20 years since the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, Japan and the world have experienced an increasing threat from many natural disasters. A great deal of effort has been made to cope with ever-increasing disasters, to minimize potential damage, and to create resilient communities and societies who can better recover at local, national- and international-levels. The 2005 Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) was adopted by all countries to address disaster risk reduction. The HFA has been evaluated and is now the basis for discussion for its revision at the upcoming third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai scheduled for 14-18 March 2015.

Japan has the largest proportion of older adults in the world. As a result, aged populations were much more affected, and accounted for more than half the victims in the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake and in the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Survivors must cope with physical, psychological and social issues, e.g. linkage with neighbours is interrupted leading to more social isolation, continuity of medical care and access to healthcare systems can often be unavailable. Once the essence of a “community” is lost, it takes a amount of tremendous time to achieve their reconstruction. It was also suggested that we can effectively restore communities if people prepare countermeasures against natural disasters in times preceding a disaster. Resilience in a community can be developed through enhancement of residents’ mobility and support system for cooperation – something that can be limited in ageing societies that increases their vulnerability.

In the Forum, five experts presented their experiences: Dr Mitani, Associate Professor of Kyoto University, reviewed the epidemiology of health conditions affecting older persons after the Great East Japan Earthquake, that included identification of health risks experienced by older populations in temporary housing. This is important to prevent secondary deaths that are relevant to and happen after the initial disaster. Dr Kako, Consultant of the WHO Kobe Centre, presented a framework for disaster prevention relevant to global population ageing, focusing on restoration and rehabilitation after disasters. Dr Okamoto, Head of Protection Section, Tarumi Ward Office in Kobe City, reported lessons learned after the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake and emphasized the need to support vulnerable communities and older people's health at all times –this was best way forward to supporting older persons during a disaster. Professor Yamamoto, Director of WHO Collaborating Center for Nursing in Disasters and Health Emergency Management, University of Hyogo, described efforts and research to support older people's health after an earthquake through the activity of the “Public health room in communities” and brought up the importance of social support as well. Dr Ochi, Director of Soma Central Hospital, pointed out the health impact of radiation and long-term evacuation at temporary houses based on her observations in Fukushima Prefecture after the Great East Japan Earthquake.

The speakers identified a few key recommendations emerging from their research and observations from the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995:

  • The significant need to address psycho-social issues such as social isolation and increasing older persons’ ability to monitor their health after a disaster.
  • During the last 20 years, there has been an increased attention to the roles of respective organizations/authorities in emergencies to the needs of older persons that have helped planning for future disaster situations.
  • Interaction and information exchange among organizations are indispensable on a daily basis for effective rescue and comprehensive support after natural disasters.
  • The concept of disaster prevention needs to be included in everyday life. There is a great opportunity for older persons to be more involved in planning and activities for disaster prevention in ageing societies.
 

Programme & Speakers

Presentations (Japanese)

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WKC Forum: Creating resilient society and community for ageing populations in disaster situations

17 January 2015 marks the 20th-year anniversary of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995. Commemorating this event, and to synthesize some of its lessons, the WHO Centre for Health Development (WHO Kobe Centre – WKC) will organize an open, public forum on “Creating resilient society and community for ageing populations in disaster situations” on Friday, 20 February in Kobe.

The 2005 Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) was adopted by all countries to address disaster risk reduction, while agencies such as WHO, UNDP and UNISDR, and others have developed specific guidance for the various aspects of the disaster continuum.

Member States have evaluated the HFA and are negotiating an update and revision at the upcoming March 2015 World Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan. Many lessons have been learned in the past decade, including from the Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE), and from so many other disasters across the world. This has led to a great need to share lessons on how to achieve the current goal of creating a resilient society and community.

Japan has the largest proportion of older adults in the world. As a result, aged populations were much more affected in the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake and in the 2011 GEJE. There are many implications from the vulnerability of older populations that help us better understand how to better prepare, respond, and support survivors. This has an impact on one of the biggest issues confronting communities that is caring for survivors that include health, psycho-social, and physical issues. As important members of the community, older persons can help lead and contribute to resilient communities.

In this Forum, five Japanese experts from the fields of medical care, nursing and from local government and from WHO will discuss how to develop a resilient society and community that is better prepared for natural disasters and can further support the survivors of natural disasters drawing from experiences of past disasters. Open discussion including questions from the audience will follow the presentations.

Date & venue:

20 February 2015 (Friday) 14:00–16:00
Hyogo Nursing Association

Programme:

Language: Japanese

14:00–14:10 Opening remarks
14:10–15:25 Presentations
15:25–15:55 Discussion
15:55–16:00 Closing remarks

Speakers:

(in order of presentations)

"Older peoples’ health after the Great East Japan Earthquake: From the epidemiological perspective"
Dr Satoko Mitani
Associate Professor, Unit for Liveable Cities, Kyoto University

"Ageing society and disaster: report form global perspective"
Dr Mayumi Kako
Consultant, WHO Kobe Centre

"Older people's health after the Hanshin Awaji Earthquake: Learning from community support activities"
Dr Kazuhisa Okamoto
Head of Protection Section in Tarumi Ward, Tarumi Ward Office, City of Kobe

"Supporting people's health through the activity of Machi-no-Hokenshitsu (Public health room in communities)"
Professor Aiko Yamamoto
Director, WHO Collaborating Center for Nursing in Disasters and Health Emergency Management
University of Hyogo

"Disaster recovery in the ageing society: the case of the Great East Japan Earthquake"
Dr Sae Ochi
Director of Internal Medicine, Soma Central Hospital

For more details:

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