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Medical Problems and Concerns with Temporary Evacuation Shelters after Great Earthquake Disasters in Japan: A Systematic Review

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 June 2021

Osamu Tokumaru Open the ORCID record for Osamu Tokumaru [Opens in a new window] ,
Masanori Fujita ,
Saeko Nagai ,
Yoko Minamikawa  and
Junnosuke Kumatani
Osamu Tokumaru
Affiliation:
Faculty of Welfare and Health Sciences, Oita University, Oita, Japan
Masanori Fujita*
Affiliation:
Division of Environmental Medicine, National Defense Medical College Research Institute, National Defense Medical College, Tokorozawa, Japan
Saeko Nagai
Affiliation:
Division of Environmental Medicine, National Defense Medical College Research Institute, National Defense Medical College, Tokorozawa, Japan School of Medicine, Oita University Faculty of Medicine, Yufu, Japan
Yoko Minamikawa
Affiliation:
Division of Environmental Medicine, National Defense Medical College Research Institute, National Defense Medical College, Tokorozawa, Japan School of Medicine, Oita University Faculty of Medicine, Yufu, Japan
Junnosuke Kumatani
Affiliation:
Division of Environmental Medicine, National Defense Medical College Research Institute, National Defense Medical College, Tokorozawa, Japan School of Medicine, Oita University Faculty of Medicine, Yufu, Japan
*
Corresponding author: Masanori Fujita, Emails: fujitama@ndmc.ac.jp or bxb01424@nifty.com.
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Abstract

Japan has repeatedly suffered from natural disasters. A number of temporary evacuation shelters have been opened for the benefit of evacuees. Although the operation of such evacuation shelters has improved after the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (1995), a number of operational difficulties were encountered during the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 and the Kumamoto Earthquake in 2016. A systematic literature review was conducted to identify the medical concerns encountered in temporary evacuation shelters by focusing on unsanitary environment, food and nutrition, and shortage of medication. Actual sanitary conditions have been found to be below the standards stipulated by the Japanese government as per international guidelines. Food aid in evacuation shelters was neither nutritionally balanced, nor was the distribution to different shelters balanced. Furthermore, evacuees with chronic diseases feared that there may be a shortage of medication. Crowding in evacuation shelters increased the risk of outbreaks of infectious diseases (e.g., tuberculosis). Malnutrition and shortage of medication exacerbated the risk of deterioration of chronic diseases (e.g., diabetes mellitus, hypertension) among evacuees. Therefore, it is recommended that healthcare professionals should be promptly deployed to evacuation shelters, to promote sanitary control and education, as well as address limited space availability, and food and medication shortage.

Keywords

disastersearthquakesevacuationevacueeshelter
Type
Systematic Review
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 16 , Issue 4 , August 2022 , pp. 1645 - 1652
Copyright
© Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2021

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