Citation

Cook A, Watson J, Buynder P, Robertson A, Weinstein P. J. Environ. Monit. 2008; 10(2): 167-175.

Affiliation

School of Population Health, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Royal Society of Chemistry)

DOI

10.1039/b713256p

PMID

18246210

Abstract

Long-term health impacts in communities that have experienced natural disasters are often overlooked. Recovery from natural disasters is often a long, drawn-out process. Recovery plans need to address these interruptions in the return to pre-disaster functioning and make provisions for addressing ongoing health problems. The following review will examine illness patterns that may arise, directly or indirectly, in the months and years following a disaster event. The objectives of the review are: (i) to identify the burden of long-term community ill-health following natural disaster events; (ii) to evaluate current gaps in the ongoing process of health monitoring for populations affected by disaster; (iii) to review approaches that would provide ongoing surveillance of physical and psychosocial ill-health.

Language: en