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Canada regularly faces environmental public health (EPH) disasters. Given the importance of evidence-based, risk-informed decision-making, we aimed to critically assess the integration of EPH expertise and research into each phase of disaster management. In-depth interviews were conducted with 23 leaders in disaster management from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia, and were complemented by other qualitative methods. Three topics were examined: governance, knowledge creation/translation, and related barriers/needs. Data were analyzed through a four-step content analysis. Six critical success factors emerged from the analysis: blending the best of traditional and modern approaches; fostering community engagement; cultivating relationships; investing in preparedness and recovery; putting knowledge into practice; and ensuring sufficient human and financial resources. Several promising knowledge-to-action strategies were also identified, including mentorship programs, communities of practice, advisory groups, systematized learning, and comprehensive repositories of tools and resources. There is no single roadmap to incorporate EPH expertise and research into disaster management. Our findings suggest that preparation for and management of EPH disaster risks requires effective long-term collaboration between science, policy, and EPH practitioners at all levels in order to facilitate coordinated and timely deployment of multi-sectoral/jurisdictional resources when and where they are most needed.

Emergencies and disasters typically affect entire communities, cause substantial losses and disruption, and result in a significant and persistent mental health burden. There is currently a paucity of evidence on safe and effective individual- and community-level strategies for improving mental health before, during, and after such events. In October 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) Centre for Health Development (WHO Kobe Centre) convened a meeting bringing together leading Asia Pacific and international disaster research experts. The expert meeting identified key research needs in five major areas, one being “Psychosocial management before, during, and after emergencies and disasters”. Experts for this research area identified critical gaps in observational research (i.e., the monitoring of long-term psychological consequences) and interventional research (i.e., the development and evaluation of individual- and community-level interventions). Three key research issues were identified. First, experts underscored the need for a standardized and psychometrically robust instrument that classified the mental health/psychosocial risk of people within both a clinical and community setting. Then, the need for a standardization of methods for prevention, screening, diagnosis, and treatment for affected people was highlighted. Finally, experts called for a better identification of before, during, and after emergency or disaster assets associated with greater community resilience.

Renforcer la capacité d’intervention et d’adaptation en santé publique nécessite d’améliorer l’efficacité des systèmes d’alerte précoce vis-à-vis des risques climatiques en évolution. Ceci implique des ajustements aux activités en cours, voire de modifier les façons de faire au sein des organisations et entre les organisations en augmentant, notamment, leurs collaborations. L’interdisciplinarité au service de la santé publique est donc de mise.

Abstract Introduction Both exposure to a natural disaster and psychological symptoms may lead to decreases in social support. Few studies have examined ways to improve social support among victims of natural disasters. Aims The objective of the study was to assess emotional and tangible support following a 12‐session Internet‐based cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT) targeting posttraumatic stress (PTS), insomnia, and depression symptoms and to examine the association between posttreatment symptoms and emotional and tangible support. Materials and Methods One hundred and seventy‐eight wildfire evacuees with significant PTS, depression and/or insomnia symptoms were given access to the ICBT. They completed questionnaires at pre‐ and posttreatment to measure social support and symptom severity. Results Results show that completion of the treatment led to an improvement in emotional support. Lower posttreatment PTS and insomnia symptoms were associated with higher posttreatment emotional support. Conclusion ICBT may contribute to enhance emotional support through symptom improvement and probably more so when social support is address directly in treatment.

La construction de l’acceptabilité sociale, conçue comme le jugement collectif des populations à l’endroit d’une politique ou d’un projet donné, s’appuie parfois sur la participation des acteurs sociaux concernés aux discussions éclairant la prise de décision publique. Les instances de démocratie intermédiaires où sont déployés divers dispositifs participatifs jouent ainsi un rôle de premier plan quant à l’émergence de l’acceptabilité. Or, la question des effets des processus participatifs sur les dynamiques d’acceptabilité sociale demeure aujourd’hui peu étudiée, que ce soit par les travaux sur l’acceptabilité sociale ou ceux portant sur la participation publique. À partir de projets soulevant des préoccupations de nature environnementale, ce numéro spécial puise à l’intersection de ces deux champs théoriques en vue d’analyser l’impact des dispositifs de démocratie participative sur la prise de décision et la construction de l’accessibilité sociale. Les contributions permettent ainsi de réfléchir à la façon dont les instances de démocratie intermédiaires contribuent ou non à l’acceptabilité sociale. De manière plus spécifique, elles explorent l’institutionnalisation du concept comme nouvelle norme de gestion publique, les effets des processus participatifs déployés dans ces instances sur l’acceptabilité d’un projet donné, de même que les effets sur les décisions finales. En somme, la réflexion proposée dans ce numéro permet de voir dans quelle mesure les dispositifs participatifs offrent les conditions d’un débat constructif permettant de mieux canaliser les conflits sociétaux que suscitent certains projets industriels ou politiques publiques, en vue de construire des compromis qui se projettent dans une vision d’avenir du développement.

Objective To assess the association between flooding/repeat flooding and: (1) psychological morbidity (anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)) and (2) health-related quality of life (HRQoL) at 6 months post-flooding. Design Cross-sectional analysis of data from the English National Study of Flooding and Health. Setting Cumbria, England. Participants Questionnaires were sent to 2500 residential addresses at 6 months post-flooding; 590 people responded. Outcomes Probable depression was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire, probable anxiety using the Generalised Anxiety Disorder scale and probable PTSD using the short-form PTSD checklist (PCL-6). HRQoL was assessed using the EQ-5D-5L. Mental health outcomes were analysed using logistic regression; HRQoL dimensions using ordinal regression; and summary index/Visual Analogue Scale scores using linear regression. Results One hundred and nineteen participants had been flooded, over half of whom were experiencing a repeat flooding event (54%; n=64). Mental health outcomes were elevated among flooded compared with unaffected participants (adjusted OR for probable depression: 7.77, 95% CI: 1.51 to 40.13; anxiety: 4.16, 95% CI: 1.18 to 14.70; PTSD: 14.41, 95% CI: 3.91 to 53.13). The prevalence of depression was higher among repeat compared with single flooded participants, but this was not significant after adjustment. There was no difference in levels of anxiety or PTSD. Compared with unaffected participants, those flooded had lower EQ-5D-5L index scores (adjusted coefficient: −0.06, 95% CI: −0.12 to −0.01) and lower self-rated health scores (adjusted coefficient: −6.99, 95% CI: −11.96 to −2.02). There was, however, little difference in HRQoL overall between repeat and single flooded participants. Conclusions Interventions are needed to help minimise the impact of flooding on people’s mental health and HRQoL.

Hurricane Katrina destroyed over 200,000 homes and led to massive economic and physical dislocation. Using a panel of tax return data, we provide one of the first comprehensive analyses of the hurricane's long-term economic impact on its victims. Hurricane Katrina had large and persistent impacts on where people live, but small and surprisingly transitory effects on employment and income. Within just a few years, Katrina victims' incomes actually surpass that of controls from similar unaffected cities. The strong economic performance of Hurricane Katrina victims is particularly remarkable given that the hurricane struck with essentially no warning. (JEL D14, H24, Q53, R23)

The observed increases in hurricane losses are often thought to result solely from societal change. A regression-based analysis of US economic losses reveals an upward trend between 1900 and 2005 that is not explained by increasing vulnerability.

Hurricane Katrina pounded the Gulf South at the end of August 2005, devastating lives and raising questions about how race and class influence human, as well as institutional, responses to disaster. This study uses survey data collected from over 1200 Hurricane Katrina survivors to examine these influences on a wide array of responses, ranging from evacuation timing and emotional support to housing and employment situations and plans to return to pre-storm communities. Results reveal strong racial and class differences, indicating that neither of these dimensions can be reduced to the other when seeking to understand responses by survivors themselves. This intersection renders low-income black home owners from New Orleans those most in need of targeted assistance as residents work to put themselves and the region back together.

The environmental justice research on urban–rural exposure to flooding is underdeveloped and few empirical studies have been conducted in China. This study addresses this gap by exploring the probabilities of exposure to floods (10-, 20-, and 50-year) and examining the relationship between vulnerable groups and flooding in Nanjing, an important central city on the Yangtze River. Statistical analysis is based on multivariable generalised estimating equation (GEE) models that describe sociodemographic disparities at the census-tract level. The results revealed that (1) highly educated people in the urban centre are more likely to live in areas with high flood risk because of the abundance of education resources, and employment opportunities are concentrated in the urban centre. (2) Natives in suburban areas are more likely to live in flood-prone areas due to their favourable ecological environments near rivers and lakes. (3) Women in rural areas are more likely to live in high-flood-risk zones because most of the men are migrant workers. These findings highlight the urgent need to develop mitigation strategies to reduce flood exposure, especially in districts with high proportions of socially disadvantaged people. The linkages between rural and urban areas need to be strengthened in order to reduce flood exposure.

This study presents the first nationwide spatial assessment of flood risk to identify social vulnerability and flood exposure hotspots that support policies aimed at protecting high-risk populations and geographical regions of Canada. The study used a national-scale flood hazard dataset (pluvial, fluvial, and coastal) to estimate a 1-in-100-year flood exposure of all residential properties across 5721 census tracts. Residential flood exposure data were spatially integrated with a census-based multidimensional social vulnerability index (SoVI) that included demographic, racial/ethnic, and socioeconomic indicators influencing vulnerability. Using Bivariate Local Indicators of Spatial Association (BiLISA) cluster maps, the study identified geographic concentration of flood risk hotspots where high vulnerability coincided with high flood exposure. The results revealed considerable spatial variations in tract-level social vulnerability and flood exposure. Flood risk hotspots belonged to 410 census tracts, 21 census metropolitan areas, and eight provinces comprising about 1.7 million of the total population and 51% of half-a-million residential properties in Canada. Results identify populations and the geographic regions near the core and dense urban areas predominantly occupying those hotspots. Recognizing priority locations is critically important for government interventions and risk mitigation initiatives considering socio-physical aspects of vulnerability to flooding. Findings reinforce a better understanding of geographic flood-disadvantaged neighborhoods across Canada, where interventions are required to target preparedness, response, and recovery resources that foster socially just flood management strategies.

Aim: The aim of the study was to investigate the health effect on and adaptation of the elderly affected by floods in the Lat Krabang District, Bangkok, Thailand in 2011.Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted. Data were collected from 290 elderly participants who were affected by the floods using questionnaires.Results: The elderly participants had previous experience with flooding, but the massive flooding in 2011 was the most severe compared to any other experiences in the past. Physical health effects included muscle pain (35.2%), athlete’s foot (28.3%), and skin rash (23.1%). The psychological health effects (24.3%) encountered included insomnia, constant stress and tension, attention deficit, and discontentment. Most elderly (89.3%) decided not to relocate thinking they could still live at home, but they were concerned about the safety of their property. In regards to preparation for the flood, they prepared consumer goods, medication, and emergency kits. In addition, they kept abreast with news on television and public announcements in the community. They also helped clear the drainage system and prepared contact information of children, relatives, and government offices in case they needed assistance. Finally, to reduce possible damage to the property, they moved their belongings to high places, built sandbag walls, raised the house level, and prepared a water pump.Conclusion: The 2011 Thailand floods had adverse effects on physical and psychological health of the elderly people. To ensure better management for this vulnerable group, plans to respond to possible disasters need to be devised by relevant agencies to reduce flood-related health impacts.