Suggestion from the Elderly Person Facilities at the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, Takiko OKAMOTO

6th
International Disaster and Risk Conference IDRC 2016
‘Integrative Risk Management – Towards Resilient Cities‘ • 28 Aug – 1 Sept 2016 • Davos • Switzerland
www.grforum.org
The Suggestion from the Elderly
Person Facilities at the 2011 Great
East Japan Earthquake
Takiko OKAMOTO*, Ichiro Ookawa**, Junko NAKAMURA*** , Takashi KANDA**
*Meiji Gakuin University: 1-2-37 Shirokanedai, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
**Graduate School of Tukuba University: 3-29-1 Ootuka, Bunkyou-ku, Tokyo,
Japan
***Shouin University: 9-1 Morinosato Wakamiya, Atugi-city, Kanagawa, Japan
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Introduction
• Japan is a lot of natural disasters such as typhoons ,
eruptions, landslides and earthquake country.
• In Japan, seismic intensity 7 or more (on the Japanese scale)
earthquakes have occurred four time in 20 years.
1995: the Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake（M7.3 ）
2004: the Chuetsu Earthquake（M6.8)
2011: the Great East Japan Earthquake（M9.0)
2016: the Kumamoto Earthquake（M7.3)
None of these earthquake were also different types, also
damage were different types.

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Welfare shelters and support system
From the experiences of the Great Hanshin Awaji
Earthquake, it has been recognized that “welfare
shelters” are necessary for people such as the elderly
person, people with disabilities, and infants and their
parents, who require welfare support.
In addition, the need for assistance from a variety
of specialists, such as doctor, nurses, clinical
psychologist, care worker, social worker, nursery to
victims was recognized.

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• However, even in the actual case of the 2011
Great East Japan Earthquake and Kumamoto
Earthquake in this year, support system of
professions condition were such that it cannot be
said to have fully functional.
• Also a system for assistance of such
cooperation among social welfare facilities ware
not fully functional.

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Purpose of the Research
• Persons who use accommodation type social
welfare facilities are people who required
assistance from before the disaster occurred.
• There are many employees who work in
accommodation type of social welfare facilities.
• We believed that we had a chance for facility
chiefs and managerial staff(FCMS) at social
welfare facilities to consider measures by FCMS at
social welfare facilities against future disasters by
learning what kind of responses existed for users
of elderly person and employees when disaster
struck.

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Research Methods
• We performed an interview survey in 2014 of 11
FCMS at facilities for the elderly in Kesennuma
City, Miyagi Prefecture, which greatly affected by
the Great East Japan Earthquake.
• 11 FCMS who according to the interview , were all
facilities that were not subject major damage such
as the death of the elderly persons and staff who
live at facility is the people who did not have badly
damaged by the Earthquake and Tunami.

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• These interviews conducted in part to learn what kinds
of behaviors at the time of the earthquake disaster by
specialists for medical, social welfare, fireman etc. in
Kesennuma City.
• This study is part of interviews survey of the former
Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology. It is passing
through the ethics committee of them.
• In addition, this study is also a part of the “Peer support
research in disaster” them in which Japan Science and
Technology Agency the Graduate School of Tukuba
University has been entrusted.

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Framework of interviews and analysis
Time progress
from a disaster
The situation of
a user and the
staff
A) Securing the
safety and ease
in life
B) Securing the
safety and ease in
daily living
(including measures
for recovery)
① Before the
disaster occurred
①－Ａ） ①－Ｂ）
② Immediately
after the disaster
occurred
②－Ａ） ②－Ｂ）
③ One week
later
③－Ａ） ③－Ｂ）
④ One month
later
④－Ａ） ④－Ｂ）
⑤ Several months
to a year later
⑤－Ａ） ⑤―Ｂ）
⑥ The period
from one year
later until the
interview
⑥－Ａ） ⑥－Ｂ）

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Result of Analysis
1－A) Before the disaster occurred
: Many of FCMS carried out disaster drills with the
elderly person and employee. However mainly to prepare
was for fires .
:Times for disaster drills took into consideration the
physical condition of elderly person and were set during
the daytime in seasons with good weather.
↓
Evacuation drill conducted for users and employees
need to be conducted taking into account various
situation.
For example, have the earthquake on the supposition
that the earthquake occurred at night of winter.

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２－A) Immediately after the disaster occurred
： Lifesaving performed.
The safety of the users elderly and leading and
confirming the evacuations.
: It was not able to ask for an instruction to FCMS.
FCMS had participated in the training of public
administration has been organized.
Telephone and mobile phone was no longer
through.
↓
Creating an employee system that can analyzed
situations and take appropriate actions even when
FCMS are not available is necessary.

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：Some of the elderly understood of the
occurrence of the earthquake, but elderly
people with dementia not understood of it.
:The elderly to live at the facility, there is a
need for a lot of support from the staff on daily
life.
↓
Day-to-day support system for the required
elderly care living in the facility, there needs to
be a minimum continue.

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3-A) For the week after the disaster
Securing the daily life for the elderly living in the
facility is top priority.
: An occurrence of blackout, therefor medical equipment,
cooking and heating systems were not available .
↓
Using what is at hand, it is important to devise alternative
function.
The adjustment of the temperature is very important to
an elderly person to maintain health.

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In Japan, we prepare considerable food and water for three
days, even if a disaster occurs.
It said that relief supplies arrived within three days.
However, relief supplies that any foods and water did not
arrive within three days. In addition, arrived food was like cold
rice balls and sweets bred cannot eat in the elderly living in the
facility.
↓
Even emergency, it is necessary to consider for various
victims.
An elderly person needs food and water. When they are
shortage of them than general people, bad influence on health
strongly appears.
Not only the elderly, would also be necessary meats that are
friendly to allergy or religion.

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Assistance to people living in community, including
the elderly person who taken refuge applied to the
work of the staff.
: Even if, the elderly facilities did not receive the
designation of the welfare shelter, many people
including elderly person evacuate expecting support
in the welfare institute.
↓
In order to tide over the difficult situation, the
facilities staff and evacuees is important to
cooperate.

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FCMS and staff in the facilities are also victims.
: Many employees could not return to their homes
immediately after the disaster.
: Confirming the safety of staff’s families was the
biggest point of concern for employees.
: In the facilities providing 24-hou for care required
by elderly, it was most important to enough staff.
↓
Two or three days after the disaster, when
employees are allowed to return to their homes for a
short time under the condition that they would to
return to their facilities.

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3-B) Recovery of daily living for one week later
The time came to discuss with the government
concerning securing appropriate food, health and
other fields.
: Even with FCMS also complained difficult
circumstances of the facility to the government, or
more corresponding to general of the victims was the
time that cannot be expected.
↓
Concluding agreements for support in times of
emergency between neighboring facilities for the
elderly and national organizations is important.

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4-A) For the month after the disaster
・ Measure for users of elderly and employees differed
depending on the conditions of restoring utilities.
• Support from the outside was important for employees to rest.
• Concerning the use of volunteers, both professional and non-
professional, they were needed. But employees could not be
devoted to giving instruction to volunteers.
↓
Support from neighboring facilities that could understand the
conditions of the facilities was a reassuring presence for elderly
and employees.
Local dialect can understood, which is why support is important
from the neighboring.

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5-A) Several months to a year later
• The elderly person living in facility tends occur a
change in the physical and mental condition.
• Employees were becoming more and more
mentally and physically tired.
↓
It became necessary for FCMS to look into how to let
staff get appropriate rest.
It is also necessary for FCMS themselves to look
after their own physical and mental health.

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5-B) Recovery of daily living for
several months later
• Maintenance of the physical environment was required.
: FCMS had to create many documents. Such as
allowance to overtime, procedure of employment
insurance for retired staff and procedure of the long-term
care insurance for the elderly.
: When buildings and equipment in a facility were
damaged, discussions with local and national
government for measures to repair such were made.
↓
FCMS is necessary to quickly correspondence with the
local and national governments.

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6-A) The period from one yare later until the
interview
Superficially, life returned at facilities as before the
disaster.
Responding to the elderly living in facility who have
lost family members in the disaster was required.
Similarly, the effect on the work due to the difference
of disaster will be seen in between the staff.
↓
FCMS will be important to paying attention to
changes in the elderly and staff, become more
important than ever before.

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6-B) Recovery of daily living for
several years later
• It was learned through the experience of the
disaster that it was necessary to look into and
actually prepare anew provisions for disasters.
• To ask the professional staff can trust the
response to Post-traumatic stress
disorder(PTSD) of staff.
↓
Supplies and personnel to prepare specifically are
necessary.

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Conclusion
A) Securing the safety and ease in life
1)Evacuation drill conducted for users and employees need to
be conducted taking into account various situation.
2）Creating an employee system that can analyzed situations
and take appropriate actions even when FCMS are not available
is necessary.
３）Using what is at hand, it is important to devise alternative
function.
４）Even emergency, it is necessary to consider for various
victims.

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５）In order to tide over the difficult situation, the facilities staff
and evacuees is important to cooperate.
６）Two or three days after the disaster, when employees are
allowed to return to their homes for a short time under the
condition that they would to return to their facilities.
７）Support from neighboring facilities that could understand
the conditions of the facilities was a reassuring presence for
elderly and employees.
８）FCMS will be important to paying attention to changes in
the elderly and staff, become more important than ever before.

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B）Securing the safety and in daily living
3)Concluding agreements for support in times of
emergency between neighboring facilities for the
elderly and national organizations is important.
5)FCMS is necessary to quickly correspondence
with the local and national governments.
6)Supplies and personnel to prepare specifically
are necessary.

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important proposal
• FCMS themselves were victims of the
disaster. But they were not an awareness for
themselves.
• In fact, the stronger the sense of
responsibility as a FCMS was felt, the more
mental and physical damage they seemed to
feel.
• This point shows that an appropriate peer
support system is need for FCMS support.

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Thank you for your attention

Suggestion from the Elderly Person Facilities at the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, Takiko OKAMOTO

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Suggestion from the Elderly Person Facilities at the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, Takiko OKAMOTO