Working with Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, a group of students from LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans' School of Public Health found a host of under or untreated medical and mental health conditions affecting adults and children living in FEMA-subsidized housing units (trailers and hotel rooms) in Louisiana.
Fifty-eight percent of the respondents would like to return to their former neighborhoods, 30 percent would like to relocate elsewhere (including a number of respondents interested in purchasing their FEMA-subsidized travel trailers and then moving them elsewhere), and 11 percent were still unsure about their future plans.
Not only is such information important to health care providers, but also to preparedness planners and policymakers.
- 34 percent of children living in FEMA-subsidized community settings have at least one diagnosed chronic medical condition, a rate one-third higher than that of the general pediatric population in the United States.
Parents report high rates of asthma, behavioral problems, and learning disabilities.
The reasons cited included the loss of medical records, lack of insurance coverage accepted at local pharmacies, inability to get to pharmacies, and medical providers who would not prescribe the medications because they were unfamiliar with the child's past medical history.
- Over half of the female care givers scored at levels consistent with clinically-diagnosed psychiatric problems, such as depression or anxiety disorders.
One parent, whose 6-year old was on an 18-month waiting list for psychiatric care, was told that she still needed a referral from her primary care physician even though he had relocated to Puerto Rico after the hurricane.
LSUHSC School of Public Health Associate Dean Stephanie Tortu concluded, "I hope this study helps people across the country understand the impact that this disaster has had on the health of the people of New Orleans."
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