A necessity that arises during natural disasters: lice treatment without water

Current treatment agents for pediculosis capitis are used during bathing and require rinsing after application. After the recent earthquake disaster in Turkey, there has been a need for a treatment that does not require rinsing in areas where there is no or limited access to water. In this context, we designed a study to find a treatment that does not require rinsing. We aimed to investigate the in vitro lethal effect of ivermectin solution on the parasite and to compare this effect with immersion oil and pure water.

Mobile Apps to Support Mental Health Response in Natural Disasters: Scoping Review

BACKGROUND

Disasters are becoming more frequent due to the impact of extreme weather events attributed to climate change, causing loss of lives, property, and psychological trauma. Mental health response to disasters emphasizes prevention and mitigation, and mobile health (mHealth) apps have been used for mental health promotion and treatment. However, little is known about their use in the mental health components of disaster management.

OBJECTIVE

This scoping review was conducted to explore the use of mobile phone apps for mental health responses to natural disasters and to identify gaps in the literature.

METHODS

We identified relevant keywords and subject headings and conducted comprehensive searches in 6 electronic databases. Studies in which participants were exposed to a man-made disaster were included if the sample also included some participants exposed to a natural hazard. Only full-text studies published in English were included. The initial titles and abstracts of the unique papers were screened by 2 independent review authors. Full texts of the selected papers that met the inclusion criteria were reviewed by the 2 independent reviewers. Data were extracted from each selected full-text paper and synthesized using a narrative approach based on the outcome measures, duration, frequency of use of the mobile phone apps, and the outcomes. This scoping review was reported according to the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews).

RESULTS

Of the 1398 papers retrieved, 5 were included in this review. A total of 3 studies were conducted on participants exposed to psychological stress following a disaster while 2 were for disaster relief workers. The mobile phone apps for the interventions included Training for Life Skills, Sonoma Rises, Headspace, Psychological First Aid, and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Behavioural Health Disaster Response Apps. The different studies assessed the effectiveness or efficacy of the mobile app, feasibility, acceptability, and characteristics of app use or predictors of use. Different measures were used to assess the effectiveness of the apps' use as either the primary or secondary outcome.

CONCLUSIONS

A limited number of studies are exploring the use of mobile phone apps for mental health responses to disasters. The 5 studies included in this review showed promising results. Mobile apps have the potential to provide effective mental health support before, during, and after disasters. However, further research is needed to explore the potential of mobile phone apps in mental health responses to all hazards.

Enhanced Arabic disaster data classification using domain adaptation

Natural disasters, like pandemics and earthquakes, are some of the main causes of distress and casualties. Governmental crisis management processes are crucial when dealing with these types of problems. Social media platforms are among the main sources of information regarding current events and public opinion. So, they have been used extensively to aid disaster detection and prevention efforts. Therefore, there is always a need for better automatic systems that can detect and classify disaster data of social media. In this work, we propose enhanced Arabic disaster data classification models. The suggested models utilize domain adaptation to provide state-of-the-art accuracy. We used a standard dataset of Arabic disaster data collected from Twitter for testing the proposed models. Experimental results show that the provided models significantly outperform the previous state-of-the-art results.

A network analysis of Hurricane Maria-related traumatic stress and substance use among Puerto Rican youth

Youth exposed to natural disasters are at risk of developing trauma-related symptoms as well as engaging in substance use. Although previous research has established associations between disaster-related stressors and substance use in youth, less has focused on how symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may underpin this association. The current study used network analysis to identify specific PTSD symptoms associated with substance use following a natural disaster. Participants were 91,732 youths (Grades 3-12) from across Puerto Rico who completed a needs assessment 5-9 months after Hurricane Maria made landfall in September 2017. We examined associations between PTSD symptoms and substance use, identified clusters of symptoms and bridges between them, and explored age- and binary gender-related differences in associations between specific PTSD symptoms and substance use. Analyses identified two symptom communities: (a) arousal and reactivity, negative alterations in cognition and mood, and substance use, and (b) avoidance and intrusion. Broader findings suggested that substance use was most strongly associated with PTSD-related irritability and angry outbursts among youths. Surrounding nodes explained only 4.1% of the variance in substance use, but this was higher among youths who reported not having a supportive adult, R2 = 8.5; friend, R2 = 7.9; or teacher/counselor, R2 = 7.7, in their life. The bridge symptoms of sleep disruption and physiological reactivity were identified as potentially critical intervention targets for disrupting PTSD symptom networks after a natural disaster. Implications for triaged mental health care following natural disasters and directions for future research are discussed.

Natural disasters, livelihood, and healthcare challenges of the people of a riverine island in Bangladesh: A mixed-method exploration

BACKGROUND

Bangladesh's islands, because of their geographical location, frequently encounter crises like floods and river erosion, which pose significant threats to the residents' well-being and livelihoods. To delve into the effects of these disasters on livelihood and healthcare challenges, a mixed-method study was undertaken in a riverine-island near a major river of Bangladesh.

METHODOLOGY

Between February 15th and February 28th, 2023, a cross-sectional study was conducted on an island in Bangladesh. The quantitative method involved conducting a survey of 442 households, with a total of 2921 participants. Additionally, 10 in-depth interviews and 10 key-informant interviews were conducted using semi-structured guidelines. Qualitative interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using a thematic analysis. Triangulation was employed in this study through the integration of qualitative and quantitative analysis, resulting in the presentation of findings that offer an in-depth comprehension of the phenomenon being investigated.

RESULTS

River erosions and floods are common and recurring natural disasters that significantly impact the lives of the riverine island inhabitants. These disasters often disrupted their livelihoods, forced many residents to endure substandard living conditions or relocated during flood events. The island faced a low diagnostic prevalence of chronic diseases (e.g., 5.1% of adults were hypertension and 2.5% are diabetes) because of the absence of diagnostic facilities and a shortage of certified doctors. A significant number of chronic illness people in the community turned to alternative medicine sources (39.3%) such as homeopathy, Kabiraj, and Ayurvedic medicine, especially it gets increased during periods of natural disasters. Moreover, reproductive aged women revealed that 79.4% of them gave birth at home, with 6.0% of these home deliveries resulting in miscarriage or infant death. The destruction of crops, unstable job opportunities, an inadequate educational system, and a deficient healthcare delivery system exacerbated the hardships faced by the population affected by these disasters.

CONCLUSION

The failure to seek treatment for chronic diseases and undiagnosed diseases is a significant health issue among the aging adults on the island. Island residents face the challenge of establishing effective prevention strategies for the well-being of older adults especially at the period of natural disasters. It is crucial for the government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to collaborate to prevent the negative effects of floods and river erosions. This should include efforts to enhance the quality of education, healthcare services, job opportunities, and financial assistance for rebuilding homes.

Global Research on Natural Disasters and Human Health: a Mapping Study Using Natural Language Processing Techniques

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

This review aimed to systematically synthesize the global evidence base for natural disasters and human health using natural language processing (NLP) techniques.

RECENT FINDINGS

We searched Embase, PubMed, Scopus, PsycInfo, and Web of Science Core Collection, using titles, abstracts, and keywords, and included only literature indexed in English. NLP techniques, including text classification, topic modeling, and geoparsing methods, were used to systematically identify and map scientific literature on natural disasters and human health published between January 1, 2012, and April 3, 2022. We predicted 6105 studies in the area of natural disasters and human health. Earthquakes, hurricanes, and tsunamis were the most frequent nature disasters; posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression were the most frequently studied health outcomes; mental health services were the most common way of coping. Geographically, the evidence base was dominated by studies from high-income countries. Co-occurrence of natural disasters and psychological distress was common. Psychological distress was one of the top three most frequent topics in all continents except Africa, where infectious diseases was the most prevalent topic. Our findings demonstrated the importance and feasibility of using NLP to comprehensively map natural disasters and human health in the growing literature. The review identifies clear topics for future clinical and public health research and can provide an empirical basis for reducing the negative health effects of natural disasters.

Scoping review on trauma and recovery in youth after natural disasters: what Europe can learn from natural disasters around the world

In the last decade, Europe has seen a rise in natural disasters. Due to climate change, an increase of such events is predicted for the future. While natural disasters have been a rare phenomenon in Europe so far, other regions of the world, such as Central and North America or Southeast Asia, have regularly been affected by Hurricanes and Tsunamis. The aim of the current study is to synthesize the literature on child development in immediate stress, prolonged reactions, trauma, and recovery after natural disasters with a special focus on trajectories of (mal-)adaptation. In a literature search using PubMed, Psychinfo and EBSCOhost, 15 studies reporting about 11 independent samples, including 11,519 participants aged 3-18 years, were identified. All studies identified resilience, recovery, and chronic trajectories. There was also evidence for delayed or relapsing trajectories. The proportions of participants within each trajectory varied across studies, but the more favorable trajectories such as resilient or recovering trajectory were the most prevalent. The results suggested a more dynamic development within the first 12 months post-disaster. Female gender, a higher trauma exposure, more life events, less social support, and negative coping emerged as risk factors. Based on the results, a stepped care approach seems useful for the treatment of victims of natural disasters. This may support victims in their recovery and strengthen their resilience. As mental health responses to disasters vary, a coordinated screening process is necessary, to plan interventions and to detect delayed or chronic trauma responses and initiate effective interventions.

Healthcare and successive natural disasters: Lessons still to be learned

This article explores the increasing impact of natural disasters on healthcare leadership and disaster preparedness, particularly in Fort McMurray, Alberta. It underscores the importance of building disaster resilience in healthcare, distinguishing between emergencies, disasters, and catastrophes, and advocating for a multi-dimensional resilience approach. The need for robust electronic communication channels and comprehensive family-oriented evacuation plans, considering family and pet safety, is emphasized. The protection of vulnerable patients, the importance of resilient healthcare infrastructure, and dedicated protective equipment for first responders are also discussed. The article highlights the critical role of government support in flood prevention and disaster preparedness. Through the experiences of Fort McMurray, the article demonstrates the necessity of comprehensive disaster planning and the crucial role of healthcare systems in rapid recovery and adaptation in the face of disasters. It aims to contribute to an improved understanding and strategies for managing such critical situations in the future.

Mass Decontamination of Companion Dogs in Disaster: Planning for Personnel, Water, and Time Requirements

OBJECTIVE

The importance of companion animals in the daily lives of people, and the increasing incidence and severity of natural disasters impacting people and their animals, is very well documented. However, despite the advancement of companion animal response capabilities, decontamination remains an inconsistently implemented component of disaster response. The challenge for local authorities is their need for planning factors and protocols specific to companion animal decontamination which are generally lacking. Data is provided on the average time requirements, water use and containment resources necessary, and the personnel required to decontaminate (decon) a large number of companion dogs.

METHODS

Sixty-three lightly contaminated, medium weight, short to medium coat, highly tractable dogs (Labradors and Hounds) from a State facility colony were used to determine the water requirements, soap effectiveness, and time required to complete decon (washing/bathing). Data were collected over a 6-mo period using 2 personnel that were randomly assigned to wash the dogs. Difference in weight, bathing time, and water use between groups was evaluated using a 2-tailed 2-sample t-test for independent data.

RESULTS

The time and water requirements were significantly different between medium coated dogs and short coated dogs. On average, for a short coated dog, the amount of time to complete decon was 7 min, and the amount of water was 8-10 gal. For medium coated dogs, the time increased to 10-12 min to complete the process and 12-15 gal water.

DISCUSSION

The results of this study provide important insights emergency management planners, animal response team members, and community personnel tasked with implementation of mass decontamination of companion dogs following a natural or man-made disaster.

Exploring the impact of recovery funding on the well-being and health workforce capability of rural practices during natural disasters and emergencies

INTRODUCTION

This study examines the impact of funding provided to support the well-being of rural health practitioners and their practice staff following the 2019-2022 bushfires.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the benefits and implications of grant funding for rural practices to aid recovery following bushfires in NSW, Australia.

DESIGN

An explanatory sequential mixed method design consisted of a survey and a thematic analysis of semi-structured Interviews.

FINDINGS

Five key themes emerged from analysis: (1) the disasters altered the role of the practice and therapeutic relationships; (2) the funding had a positive impact on access to professional development; (3) the training had a positive impact on staff well-being and resilience; (4) the professional development had a positive impact on rural practitioner's sense of capability; and (5) important elements of future grant opportunities.

DISCUSSION

The findings indicate the importance of recovering funding to facilitate access to professional development for rural health practioners during natural disasters which improved their mental health and wellbeing, capability and support to clients.

CONCLUSION

Recovery funding facilitated improvement in workforce capability, professional resilience, mental health and well-being in the face of natural disasters and emergencies. There was a link between training and maintaining the capability of rural health care practitioners and their practice staff. Capability was an important factor in the well-being and resilience of the health workforce and their ability to support clients.

Meta-analyses of motivational factors of response to natural disaster

Response behavior of individuals is of critical importance to decrease chances of injury and death as well as ameliorate costs in property and infrastructure damage in natural disasters. Plenty of studies have examined which factors motivate individuals to respond to natural disasters. However, a systematic overview of the key motivating factors of various response behaviors is lacking. This study conducts a series of meta-analyses using data of 53,713 samples from 87 studies (77 papers) conducted in 27 different countries and regions to examine how 17 motivational factors were associated with individuals' response to natural disasters. The results indicate self-efficacy, outcome efficacy, attitudes, subjective norms, and information acquisition show the strongest effects on response behavior. Contrarily, the impact of negative affects like fear, depression, and anxiety on victims is minimal, despite the common assumption that they are significant related to response behaviour. In addition, current studies have disproportionally focused on studying risk perception, experience and information acquisition, earthquake and hurricane, and evacuation and preparation, while attention given to other types of motivational factors, disasters and response behaviors is lacking.

Natural disasters, foreign direct investment, and women's rights in developing countries

We examine the conditions under which women's economic and political status is less vulnerable in the aftermath of natural disasters. We theorize that women in natural disaster-hit countries that receive higher levels of foreign direct investment (FDI) are less susceptible to the gendered impacts of those disasters. Since FDI is vital to post-disaster economic recovery, countries grappling with natural disasters are motivated to uphold women's rights as a strategy to attract FDI. Furthermore, multinational corporations (MNCs)' operation and commitment to gender equality-based values and practices are also an impetus to address the deterioration in respect for women's rights. By conducting a time-series cross-sectional, ordered logistic analysis with random effects and using a comprehensive dataset on natural disasters and women's rights, including 107 developing countries from 1990 to 2011, we find that FDI mitigates natural disasters' adverse effects on women's economic rights but not their political rights.

Natural disasters: a comprehensive study using EMDAT database 1995-2022

INTRODUCTION

The frequency, intensity, and geographical reach of natural disasters, fueled in part by factors such as climate change, population growth, and urbanization, have undeniably been escalating concerns around the world.

DESIGN AND METHODS

This is a retrospective analysis of natural disasters recorded in the Emergency Events Database from 1995 to 2022.

RESULTS

Between 1995 and 2022, 11,360 natural disasters occurred, with a mean of 398 per year. Asia experienced the most disasters (4390) and the highest number of casualties (918,198). Hydrological disasters were the most common subgroup (4969), while geophysical disasters led in terms of deaths (770,644). Biological disasters caused the most injuries (2544), particularly in Africa.

CONCLUSION

Recognizing the historical impacts of the various subtypes of natural disasters may help different regions better risk analyze and mitigate the unique risks associated with such events.

Can sustainable entrepreneurship be achieved through green knowledge sharing, green dynamic capabilities, and green service innovation?

Expansion of business activities comes with various environmental and natural disasters, hence agitating the economies and academia to present the counter and effective solution. Researchers also pinpointed prior that there exists a dark side of business expansion such as lacking of green innovative activities and dynamic capabilities which are creating resistance to achieve sustainability. Besides, literature also claims that green innovation is a crucial segment to achieve competitive edge that leads to sustainable entrepreneurship; however, it is not easier to be achieved as green innovation along green capabilities makes a complex network which consists of embedded partners, hence, also in dire need of green knowledge sharing as well to make the process smooth. In this lieu, the study aims to scrutinize the effectiveness of green knowledge sharing, green dynamic capabilities, and green service innovation on green entrepreneurship in the presence of gender role as a moderator. Empirical estimations calculated through PLS methodology reveal that green knowledge sharing, green dynamic capabilities, and green service innovation has a positive and significant linkage with green entrepreneurship in Vietnam. The outcomes also exposed that the male gender role significantly moderates the said relationship in Vietnam. Findings confirm that adoption sustainability practices such as green knowledge sharing, innovation, and dynamic capabilities are helpful to fulfill sustainable entrepreneurship demand; hence, further research is needed to extend the framework along with existing concepts.

Reproductive health challenges during a flood: A qualitative study

AIM

The study aimed to investigate women's reproductive health challenges during floods.

DESIGN

This study is qualitative, specifically employing content analysis with an inductive approach.

METHODS

Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured individual interviews between July and December 2021. The study involved 13 women affected by floods in Golestan province, Aq Qala Township, and also included seven healthcare providers and officials. Before the interviews, informed and written consent was obtained from all participants. The sampling process continued until data saturation was achieved.

RESULTS

The analysis of the participants' experiences in this study revealed four main categories of requirements, which were as follows: Maternal and Child Health with four subcategories, Essentials of Women's Health Care with two subcategories, Problems of Relationships with two subcategories, and Aggression and Physical Violence with two subcategories. In conclusion, during floods, women encounter numerous challenges in preserving their reproductive health. Recognizing and understanding these challenges can be instrumental in effectively planning measures to prevent or address them during disasters like floods.

IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION AND/OR PATIENT CARE IMPACT

Every disaster has unique conditions and challenges. The health requirements of individuals impacted by floods differ from those affected by other natural disasters. By identifying the specific reproductive health needs of women affected by floods, midwives and other healthcare providers can enhance their planning efforts, enabling them to better address and fulfil these needs during such critical situations.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

Thirteen women were affected by floods, and seven healthcare providers and officials were interviewed.

The Role of Trust in Disaster Risk Reduction: A Critical Review

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the concept of trust within the domain of natural disaster management. Trust can be defined as a state of vulnerability where one party relies on another party with the expectation that the latter will carry out entrusted responsibilities without exploiting this inherent vulnerability. This comprehensive literature review is dedicated to the examination of research concerning community and institutional trust in the field of disaster risk reduction (DRR). Particular emphasis is placed on elucidating the influence of trust throughout the distinct phases of natural disaster management, namely prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery. The critical examination of the pertinent body of the literature demonstrates that trust plays a central role across the different phases of DRR, being positively associated with effective community responses and resilience. Hence, it becomes imperative to actively foster the development of trust at both institutional and community levels within the realm of DRR. This endeavor is essential for adequately preparing communities to confront natural disasters, crafting effective protocols to enhance community responsiveness and mitigate adverse consequences, and advancing strategies for successful reconstruction and recovery.

Edge-based graph neural network for ranking critical road segments in a network

Transportation networks play a crucial role in society by enabling the smooth movement of people and goods during regular times and acting as arteries for evacuations during catastrophes and natural disasters. Identifying the critical road segments in a large and complex network is essential for planners and emergency managers to enhance the network's efficiency, robustness, and resilience to such stressors. We propose a novel approach to rapidly identify critical and vital network components (road segments in a transportation network) for resilience improvement or post-disaster recovery. We pose the transportation network as a graph with roads as edges and intersections as nodes and deploy a Graph Neural Network (GNN) trained on a broad range of network parameter changes and disruption events to rank the importance of road segments. The trained GNN model can rapidly estimate the criticality rank of individual road segments in the modified network resulting from an interruption. We address two main limitations in the existing literature that can arise in capital planning or during emergencies: ranking a complete network after changes to components and addressing situations in post-disaster recovery sequencing where some critical segments cannot be recovered. Importantly, our approach overcomes the computational overhead associated with the repeated calculation of network performance metrics, which can limit its use in large networks. To highlight scenarios where our method can prove beneficial, we present examples of synthetic graphs and two real-world transportation networks. Through these examples, we show how our method can support planners and emergency managers in undertaking rapid decisions for planning infrastructure hardening measures in large networks or during emergencies, which otherwise would require repeated ranking calculations for the entire network.

Conflict and natural disaster: the impacts on medical education in Ukraine and Türkiye

In addition to causing enormous and enduring harms to the health of populations, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the recent earthquakes in southeast Türkiye have greatly damaged the institutions of medical education at work in these countries. This paper explores these harms and encourages medical educationalists in unaffected countries to reflect on the virtues of their own educational institutions.

RescueNet: A High Resolution UAV Semantic Segmentation Dataset for Natural Disaster Damage Assessment

Recent advancements in computer vision and deep learning techniques have facilitated notable progress in scene understanding, thereby assisting rescue teams in achieving precise damage assessment. In this paper, we present RescueNet, a meticulously curated high-resolution post-disaster dataset that includes detailed classification and semantic segmentation annotations. This dataset aims to facilitate comprehensive scene understanding in the aftermath of natural disasters. RescueNet comprises post-disaster images collected after Hurricane Michael, obtained using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) from multiple impacted regions. The uniqueness of RescueNet lies in its provision of high-resolution post-disaster imagery, accompanied by comprehensive annotations for each image. Unlike existing datasets that offer annotations limited to specific scene elements such as buildings, RescueNet provides pixel-level annotations for all classes, including buildings, roads, pools, trees, and more. Furthermore, we evaluate the utility of the dataset by implementing state-of-the-art segmentation models on RescueNet, demonstrating its value in enhancing existing methodologies for natural disaster damage assessment.

"One community at a time": promoting community resilience in the face of natural hazards and public health challenges

BACKGROUND

Resilience is vital for facing natural disasters and public health challenges. Despite the significance of resilience-building activities, there is a scarcity of locally-tailored planning and response strategies, leaving communities incapable of addressing the unique challenges posed by natural disasters and public health crises. This study aims to explore how the "One Community at a Time" approach enhances community resilience in facing natural hazards and public health challenges.

METHODS

A systematic review was conducted over journal articles published from January 2001 to April 2023 through PRISMA approach. Multiple databases such as Web of Science and Scopus were thoroughly searched. We used independent screening by two researchers and painstaking data extraction using standardized forms. This approach was adopted to assure the reliability, validity, and precision of our study selection and analysis. The included studies' quality was evaluated by the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool.

RESULTS

In the evaluation, 35 studies were deemed eligible for inclusion and underwent in-depth examination. Several major components of "One Community at a Time" have been identified, including social capital and networks, local knowledge and learning, effective governance and leadership, preparedness and response capacity, and adaptive infrastructure and resources. This framework highlights the significance of individualized approaches to resilience-building initiatives, recognizing that each community has specific strengths, needs, and challenges.

CONCLUSION

Relevant stakeholders can adapt suitable resilient strategies to help prepare and recover from natural hazards and public health challenges. By adopting a localized strategy, stakeholders can collaborate to develop a culture of readiness and resilience, ultimately leading to more sustainable and resilient communities. This framework advises community-based groups, local government, and other stakeholders on prioritizing partnerships, preparedness planning, community participation, and leadership as essential components of creating and maintaining resilience. "One Community at a Time" framework offers practical guidance for community-based organizations, local government, and other stakeholders to prioritize partnerships, preparedness planning, community participation, and leadership as essential components of creating and sustaining resilience.

Effective protection: the embryonic development and clinical outcomes of emergency vitrification of 1246 oocytes and Day 0-Day 5 embryos in a natural disaster

STUDY QUESTION

Can emergency vitrification protect embryos and oocytes during natural disasters or other events that prevent normal practice to achieve satisfactory embryonic development and clinical outcomes at a later time?

SUMMARY ANSWER

Emergency vitrification of oocytes and Day 0-Day 5 (D0-D5) embryos during disasters is a safe and effective protective measure.

WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY

When some destructive events such as floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, and other accidents occur, emergency vitrification in embryo laboratories to protect human embryos, oocytes, and sperm is one of the important measures of an IVF emergency plan. However, there are few detailed reports on emergency vitrification in a state of disaster, especially about oocytes and D0 zygotes. Therefore, the effectiveness and safety of emergency vitrification of oocytes and D0-D5 embryos in disaster states are still unclear.

STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION

A retrospective study was made in the Reproductive Medicine Center of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2018 to November 2022. The record rainstorms in Zhengzhou, China, caused severe flooding, traffic disruptions, and power outages. From 17:30, 20 July 2021 to 17:30, 21 July 2021, 1246 oocytes and D0-D5 embryos of 155 patients were vitrified whilst the laboratory had only an emergency power supply.

PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS

As of 21 December 2021, 1149 emergency vitrified oocytes and D0-D5 embryos of 124 patients underwent frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET). They were divided into the following four groups according to the days of embryo culture in vitro: oocyte group, Day 0-Day 1 (D0-D1) group, Day 2-Day 3 (D2-D3) group, and Day 4-Day 5 (D4-D5) group. Control groups for each were selected from fresh cycle patients who underwent IVF/ICSI from January 2018 to October 2021. Control and emergency vitrification patients were matched on criteria that included age, fertilization method, days of embryonic development, and number and grade of transferred embryos. A total of 493 control patients were randomly selected from the eligible patients and matched with the emergency vitrification groups in a ratio of 4:1. The results of assisted reproduction and follow-up of pregnancy were analyzed. The embryonic development, clinical outcomes, and birth outcomes in each group were statistically analyzed.

MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE

A significant difference was observed in fertilization rate (81% versus 72%, P = 0.022) between the oocyte group and the control group. Significant differences were also observed in the monozygotic twin pregnancy rate (10% versus 0%, P = 0.038) and ectopic pregnancy rate (5% versus 0%, P = 0.039) between the D0-D1 group and the control group. No significant differences (P > 0.05) were observed between vitrified oocytes/D0-D1 embryos/D2-D3 embryos and the control group on the number of high-quality embryos (3.17 ± 3.00 versus 3.84 ± 3.01, P = 0.346; 5.04 ± 3.66 versus 4.56 ± 2.87, P = 0.346; 4.85 ± 5.36 versus 5.04 ± 4.64, P = 0.839), the number of usable blastocysts (1.22 ± 1.78 versus 1.21 ± 2.03, P = 0.981; 2.16 ± 2.26 versus 1.55 ± 2.08, P = 0.090; 2.82 ± 3.23 versus 2.58 ± 3.32, P = 0.706), clinical pregnancy rate (56% versus 57%, P = 0.915; 55% versus 55%, P = 1.000; 40% versus 50%, P = 0.488), miscarriage rate (30% versus 15%, P = 0.496; 5% versus 11%, P = 0.678; 17% versus 20%, P = 1.000), and live birth rate (39% versus 49%, P = 0.460; 53% versus 50%, P = 0.772; 33% versus 40%, P = 0.635). No significant differences (P > 0.05) were observed between the D4-D5 group and the control group on clinical pregnancy rate (40% versus 55%, P = 0.645), miscarriage rate (0% versus 18%, P = 1.000), and live birth rate (40% versus 45%, P = 1.000).

LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION

The retrospective study design is a limitation. The timing and extent of natural disasters are unpredictable, so the sample size of vitrified oocytes, zygotes, and embryos is beyond experimental control.

WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS

This study is the first study analyzing embryonic development, clinical outcomes, and birth outcomes of large samples of oocytes, D0 zygotes, and D1-D5 embryos after emergency vitrification under the disaster conditions. The results show that emergency vitrification is a safe and effective protective measure applicable to oocytes and D0-D5 embryos. The embryology laboratories need to be equipped with an emergency uninterrupted power supply capable of delivering for 6-8 h at full load.

STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S)

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant 81871206). The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest. All authors have completed the ICMJE Disclosure form.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

N/A.

Perinatal Mental Health Outcomes Following Natural Disasters

This Viewpoint discusses mental health outcomes associated with natural disaster–related stressors during the perinatal period.

Etiology and incidence of postpartum depression among birthing women in the scenario of pandemics, geopolitical conflicts and natural disasters: a systematic review

Postpartum depression (PPD) is classified under postpartum psychiatric disorders and initiates soon after birthing, eliciting neuropsychological and behavioral deficits in mothers and offspring. Globally, PPD is estimated to be associated with 130-190 per 1000 birthing. The severity and incidences of PPD have aggravated in the recent years due to the several unfavorable environmental and geopolitical circumstances. The purpose of this systematic review hence is to explore the contributions of recent circumstances on the pathogenesis and incidence of PPD. The search, selection and retrieval of the articles published during the last three years were systematically performed. The results from the primary studies indicate that unfavorable contemporary socio-geopolitical and environmental circumstances (e.g. Covid-19 pandemic, political conflicts/wars, and natural calamities; such as floods and earthquakes) detrimentally affect PPD etiology. A combination of socio-economic and psychological factors, including perceived lack of support and anxiousness about the future may contribute to drastic aggravation of PPD incidences. Finally, we outline some of the potential treatment regimens (e.g. inter-personal psycho- and art-based therapies) that may prove to be effective in amelioration of PPD-linked symptoms in birthing women, either alone or in complementation with traditional pharmacological interventions. We propose these psychological and art-based intervention strategies may beneficially counteract the negative influences of the unfortunate recent events across multiple cultures, societies and geographical regions.

Modeling the power system resilience in China under different natural disasters

A good understanding of the power system resilience is necessary for optimizing the investment strategies and supporting the emergency rescue, but the existing quantitative estimation results based on real outage events are still lacked due to the data limitations. Therefore, this study first establishes a unified framework to measure the power system resilience under different natural disasters, by integrating the electricity performance curve with the dynamic inoperability input-output model. Then, a database of 285 Chinese historical big power outage events caused by natural disasters is established, and the city-level power system resilience values are estimated. Finally, a benefit analysis is conducted for improving the power system resilience. Our major findings are that: (1) Electricity system recoveries quickest from hail (23.05 h), while restores slowest from snowstorm (117.31 h). (2) China's city electricity system is the most resilient to the thunderstorm, while is the least resilient to the earthquake. (3) Enhancing the power system resilience will significantly reduce the requirements for rescue resources, and the saved emergency rescue cost ranges from 0.57 million yuan to 12.08 million yuan with 1% reduction of initial inoperability.

Disaster experience and resident risk preference: Evidence from China household finance survey

China is one of the countries hardest hit by disasters. Disaster shocks not only cause a large number of casualties and property damage but also have an impact on the risk preference of those who experience it. Current research has not reached a consensus conclusion on the impact of risk preferences. This paper empirically analyzes the effects of natural and man-made disasters on residents' risk preference based on the data of the China Household Financial Survey (CHFS) in 2019. The results indicate that: (1) Both natural and man-made disasters can significantly lead to an increase in the risk aversion of residents, and man-made disasters have a greater impact. (2) Education background plays a negative moderating role in the impact of man-made disasters on residents' risk preference. (3) Natural disaster experiences have a greater impact on the risk preference of rural residents, while man-made disaster experiences have a greater impact on the risk preference of urban residents. Natural disaster experiences make rural residents more risk-averse, while man-made disaster experiences make urban residents more risk-averse. The results provide new evidence and perspective on the negative impact of disaster shocks on the social life of residents.

A Closer Look at Indirect Causes of Death After Hurricane Maria Using a Semiparametric Model

OBJECTIVE

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic as well as other recent natural emergencies have put the spotlight on emergency planning. One important aspect is that natural disasters or emergencies often lead to indirect deaths, and studying the behavior of indirect deaths during emergencies can guide emergency planning. While many studies have suggested many indirect deaths in Puerto Rico due to Hurricane Maria; the specific causes of these deaths have not been carefully studied.

METHODS

In this study, we use a semiparametric model and mortality data to evaluate cause of death trends. Our model adjusts for cause of death effect potentially varying over time while also inferring on how long excess deaths occurred.

RESULTS

From September 2017 to March 2018, after adjusting for intra-annual variability and population displacement, we find evidence of significant excess deaths due to Alzheimer's/Parkinson, heart disease, sepsis, diabetes, renal failure, and pneumonia and influenza.

CONCLUSIONS

In contrast, for the same time period we find no evidence of significant excess deaths due to cancer, hypertension, respiratory diseases, cerebrovascular disease, suicide, homicide, falling accidents, and traffic accidents.

Unleashing the power of emergency response: controlling natural disasters by addressing environmental risk

The primary focus of the analysis is to investigate the impact of emergency response management and environmental risk on natural disasters by controlling the variables of national income and financial development. To investigate the model empirically, we have employed the quantile autoregressive distributed lag model that estimates the short- and long-run estimates across various quantiles. The long-run estimates of emergency response management are negative and significant only at higher quantiles, i.e., from 60 to 95th quantiles. In the short run, emergency response management's estimated coefficients are negative and significant from 70 to 95th quantiles. Environmental risk shows a significant positive correlation with natural disasters across quantiles, while national income and financial development decrease natural disasters in the long run. Furthermore, we observed the asymmetric impact of emergency response management on natural disasters in both the short and long run.

A cross-disasters comparison of psychological distress: Symptoms network analysis

Large-scale traumatic events have the potential to trigger psychological distress, particularly among those in the affected areas. However, the manifestation of psychological distress may vary across different types of disasters. This study thus aimed to compare the symptoms network structure of psychological distress as assessed by the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale across three types of disasters: Terror (n = 5842), COVID-19 (n = 2428), and a nature-related disaster (n = 1001). Across disasters, two communities representing depression and anxiety symptoms were revealed. However, while after a nature-related disaster and the COVID-19 pandemic depression and anxiety items were interconnected via hopelessness, a terror attack resulted in more separated manifestations of anxiety and depression. Examination of symptom centrality showed that while in the Terror and the COVID-19 networks "depressed/no cheering up" was most connected to other symptoms, for the nature-related disaster network, two items were most central: "depressed/no cheering up" and "restless or fidgety". The results may point to different mechanisms of psychological distress structures after different disasters. Depending on the type of disaster, trauma-focused interventions may require targeted support and treatment.

A Chief Health Security Officer for Every Academic Health Center: Improving Readiness, Response, Recovery, and Resilience

Academic health centers (AHCs) require expertise to ensure readiness for health security events, such as cyberattacks, natural disasters, and pandemics, as well as the ability to respond to and recover from these events. However, most AHCs lack an individual to coordinate efforts at an enterprise level across academic and operational units during an emergency; elevate the coordination of individual AHCs with local and state public health entities; and through professional organizations, coordinate the work of AHCs across national and international public health entities. Informed by AHCs' responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and a series of focused meetings in 2021 of the Association of Academic Health Centers President's Council on Health Security, the authors propose creating a new C-suite role to meet these critical needs: the chief health security officer (CHSO). The CHSO would be responsible for the AHC's overall health security and would report to the AHC's chief executive officer or president. The authors describe the role of CHSO in relation to the preparation, response, and recovery phases of public health events necessary for health security. They also propose key duties for this position and encourage institutions to offer training and credentials to facilitate the creation and define the portfolios of CHSO positions at AHCs and beyond.

Rural and Agricultural Natural Disaster Stress and Recovery: A Comparison

This study used a novel survey instrument to evaluate the hypothesis that U.S. agricultural producers have significantly different stress and recovery experiences following acute-onset natural disaster compared to their non-agricultural counterparts. Participants were recruited through local organizations and targeted email and social media in communities in Arkansas and Nebraska that had experienced violent tornadoes in 2014 and/or severe flooding in 2019. The survey instrument incorporated the Brief Resilience Scale, the Revised Impact of Event Scale referencing two time points, the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory-Short Form, and original questions. Demographic, exposure, stress, and recovery measures were analyzed in SAS with Chi-square tests, t-tests, Wilcoxon tests, and multiple linear regression modeling to test for differences between agricultural and non-agricultural groups in resilience, event exposure, stress symptoms in the week after the event, stress symptoms in the month before the survey, a calculated recovery ratio, and posttraumatic growth. Analysis sample (N = 159) contained 20.8% agricultural occupation, 71.1% female, and 49.1% over age 55. No significant differences were found between agricultural and non-agricultural participants when comparing resilience, stress, or recovery ratio measures. Unadjusted posttraumatic growth score was significantly lower in the agriculture group (P = .02), and an occupation group by sex interaction was significantly associated with posttraumatic growth score (P = .02) when controlled for number of initial posttraumatic stress symptoms in the adjusted model, with agricultural women showing lower growth. Overall, there was no evidence of significant difference in disaster stress and recovery between agricultural and rural, non-agricultural groups in this study. There was some evidence that women in agriculture may have lower levels of recovery. Data indicated that rural residents continue to experience posttraumatic-type symptoms up to 8 years beyond the acute-onset natural disaster events. Communities should include strategies to support mental and emotional health in their preparedness, response, and recovery plans with intentional inclusion of agricultural populations.

Association between sense of coherence and health and well-being among older survivors of a natural disaster: a prospective outcome-wide study

We examined whether pre-disaster Sense of Coherence (SOC) mitigated the impact of housing damage on health and well-being of older survivors after the 2011 Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. A panel survey was conducted in a city located 80 km west of the epicenter seven months before and three years after the disaster (3594 respondents). Among respondents with lighter property damage, higher SOC was inversely associated with mental distress (coefficient - 0.29, 95% CI (confidence interval) - 0.39, - 0.19, p < .01), unhappiness (coefficient - 0.33, 95% CI - 0.43, - 0.23, p < .01), low expectation of mutual help (coefficient - 0.17, 95% CI - 0.27, - 0.07, p < .01), and weak community attachment (coefficient - 0.20, 95% CI - 0.30, - 0.11, p < .01). Conversely, among those who experienced housing loss, higher SOC was no longer protectively associated with health and well-being. Loss of generalized resistance resources due to serious damage led to difficulties in stress coping.

Investigating the effectiveness of protection motivation theory in predicting behaviors relating to natural disasters, in the households of southern Iran

Background

Disasters can lead to large human casualties, destruction of property and economic and environmental resources. The purpose of the present study was to answer the question whether the Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) is effective in predicting behaviors related to the harmful effects of natural disasters in the households of southern Iran.

Materials and methods

This quantitative and cross-sectional study was conducted on 528 households in Jiroft city. Sampling was done by combined method (the combination of cluster, simple random, proportional and systematic random sampling). A total of 528 households were included. The tools for collecting data were demographic information and a researcher-made questionnaire related to PMT constructs and preventive behaviors from the harmful effects of natural disasters. Data was analyzed using SPSS v21 software, and the necessary analyzes (descriptive tests, chi-square, one-way ANOVA and Pearson's correlation test) were performed at a significance level of 0.05. Using Amos v 21 software, the predictors of safety behaviors were determined using path analysis.

Results

The results showed 51.7% lived in the city and 62.1% of residential buildings were of brick without markings. There is a significant difference between preventive behaviors and direct exposure to disasters (p < 0.001), education (p = 0.004), monthly income (p = 0.004) and source of information (p = 0.040). There was also a significant correlation between preventive behaviors and the number of vulnerable family members (p = 0.001, r = 0.160). The adjusted model of the path analysis test showed that protection motivation (β = 0.547), fear (β = 0.147) and perceived vulnerability (β = 0.135) had the greatest role among the constructs of the protection motivation theory.

Conclusion

According to the results of the study, it is suggested that health planners design and implement educational interventions based on the structures of the mentioned model to increase the preparedness of households against natural disasters.

Tourism during health disasters: Exploring the role of health system quality, transport infrastructure, and environmental expenditures in the revival of the global tourism industry

Tourism is one of the most important promoters of sustainable development in many nations and regions around the globe. Tourism expansion has been a significant contributor to social and economic growth, particularly in developing economies. It is, however, vulnerable to all kinds of health crises and natural disasters, no matter how small they are. The primary purpose of this study is to acquire an empirical understanding of the effects of health crises and disasters on international tourism. The SYS-GMM was used to examine the impact of health calamities and crises, carbon footprints from transportation, and green finance on the tourism of 51 countries between 2007 and 2020. The results showed that health crises and natural disasters have a big effect on international tourism. Alternatively, the presence of eco-friendly and secure transportation at tourist destinations has a positive effect on the tourism industry. The results also showed that environmental expenditures have positive short- and long-term effects on international tourism. Furthermore, the sensitivity of travelers to health crises and natural disasters varies over the short and long term. The study also showed that compared to normal times, international tourism dropped by more than 67% during COVID-19. Consequently, this research assists us in comprehending, predicting, and preventing the potential adverse effects of COVID-19 and other similar economic, health disasters and crises that could occur in the future and harm the tourism industry.

Patterns of pharmaceutical supplies and medicines donations received during a natural disaster

BACKGROUND

In response to emergencies, such as wildfires, donations of pharmaceuticals often occur. These donations can be given directly by governments, to non-governmental organizations as corporate donations, or by private entities that donate to individual health institutions.

OBJECTIVE

This paper aimed to collect, review and analyze pharmaceutical product donations received during the natural disaster caused by wildfires in the San Luis province, Argentina, in September and October 2020.

METHODS

A descriptive, cross-sectional, and retrospective study was performed. An introductory approach to good donation practices was also carried out. Medicines were classified and in the case of products that were not suitable for administration, these were discarded.

RESULTS

A total of 15,593 units were segregated, of which 52.8% were over-the-counter products and 47.2% were prescription drugs. 86.3% (13,467 units) were accepted, while 13.7% (2126 units) had to be destroyed. The value of donations totaled USD 16,544. The analysis of the results showed that an important part of the donations was irrelevant in the emergency context. Donations were also received in incorrect amounts, which generated a large stock of medicines that couldn't be used. In emergencies, inappropriate donations create additional work during sorting, storage, and distribution, increasing the time professionals need to complete tasks. This extra work can easily overwhelm limited human and logistical resources.

CONCLUSIONS

It is important to previously evaluate the real need for donations. In addition, the distribution of donations must be done through pre-established systems and policies. Otherwise, unsolicited and unnecessary drug donations become wasteful and should therefore be avoided.

Impact of wars and natural disasters on emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases

Emerging Infectious Diseases (EIDs) and Re-Emerging Infectious Diseases (REIDs) constitute significant health problems and are becoming of major importance. Up to 75% of EIDs and REIDs have zoonotic origin. Several factors such as the destruction of natural habitats leading humans and animals to live in close proximity, ecological changes due to natural disasters, population migration resulting from war or conflict, interruption or decrease in disease prevention programs, and insufficient vector control applications and sanitation are involved in disease emergence and distribution. War and natural disasters have a great impact on the emergence/re-emergence of diseases in the population. According to a World Bank estimation, two billion people are living in poverty and fragility situations. Wars destroy health systems and infrastructure, curtail existing disease control programs, and cause population movement leading to an increase in exposure to health risks and favor the emergence of infectious diseases. A total of 432 catastrophic cases associated with natural disasters were recorded globally in 2021. Natural disasters increase the risk of EID and REID outbreaks by damaging infrastructure and leading to displacement of populations. A Generic National Action Plan covering risk assessment, mechanism for action, determination of roles and responsibilities of each sector, the establishment of a coordination mechanism, etc. should be developed.

The effect of natural disasters on human capital in the United States

Although natural disasters are commonplace, they leave in their wake an enormous amount of damage. The physical damage they cause is immediately apparent, but less obvious is the potential magnitude of disruptions to learning and resulting damage to human capital. Using the universe of Presidential Disaster Declarations in the United States, we show that natural disasters impact a region's human capital both via reductions in learning for students who remain in school as well as a reduction in the years of schooling completed. These effects appear to be scarring and persistent. Quantifying these losses using the implied reduction of lifetime earnings suggests that natural disasters reduce a region's human capital by a similar magnitude as the assessed property damage.