Healthy, Resilient, and Sustainable Communities After Disasters: Strategies, Opportunities, and Planning for Recovery (2015)

E

Committee-Identified Research Needs

OVERARCHING RESEARCH NEEDS

• What are the facilitators and barriers to a Health in All Policies approach in the disaster recovery context?
• How does integration of health improvement plans with comprehensive plans and pre-disaster recovery plans prior to a disaster support a healthy community approach to disaster recovery?
• What are the optimal organizational arrangements at state and local levels under the structure of the National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF) that would facilitate coordination across sectors, including the often separate health and social services domains?
• What strategies can be used to better integrate the ongoing collaborative initiatives that occur in nearly all communities under the rubric of community development and human services transformation into NDRF-driven organizational and governance structures for recovery?
• What measurement methodology and core set of metrics would enable communities to evaluate the effects of recovery activities on health outcomes and adjust strategic approaches as needed in the context of a learning system? What is the evidence for return on investment?
• How can aligning grant guidance and technical assistance support a more coordinated federal effort to promote recovery planning and the incorporation of a community-derived healthy, resilient, and sustainable community?

PUBLIC HEALTH RECOVERY

• For those with chronic health problems exacerbated by the effects of disasters, what are the stages of exacerbation? How can identifying persons that are at highest risk for most rapid deterioration assist in prioritization of limited resources during recovery?

HEALTH CARE RECOVERY

• How can team-based and community-based care approaches that emerge after a disaster be sustained?

• What is the effect of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on health care system recovery approaches?
• How can health care coalitions be optimally leveraged to better integrate health care leadership into recovery planning and operations?
• What are the long-term impacts on health when access to care is disrupted?

BEHAVIORAL HEALTH RECOVERY

• What is the effectiveness of interventions that are currently commonly employed for psychosocial support, including psychological first aid, crisis counseling, and psychoeducation? How does the population-based Crisis Counseling Assistance and Training Program (CCP) model compare to other models (e.g., exposure-based model)?
• What is the effectiveness of current counselor training programs?
• How can interventions be better matched to specific target groups, including vulnerable populations such as children?
• What is the effect of strengthening social networks on incidence of post-disaster behavioral health disorders?

SOCIAL SERVICES RECOVERY

• How does early identification of and support for vulnerable populations reduce long-term psychological consequences or long-term recovery needs?
• How can the social services system maintain a healthy workforce and optimize its utilization after disaster? What percentage of workers can an agency expect to lose as a result of trauma, loss, burnout, or family needs?
• What training do event-based volunteers need to be able to support the social services system? What types of tasks are appropriate for volunteers? How can faith-based and other nongovernmental organizations be mobilized in pre-disaster recovery planning?
• What strategies can be promoted to better facilitate information sharing among social services providers at all levels during and after disasters?
• What are the long-term impacts to beneficiaries of government assistance and their families when a disaster causes disruptions in benefits?

PLACE-BASED STRATEGIES FOR RECOVERY

• How do high levels of collaboration at the local level among the community development and health and social services sectors to examine problems holistically translate to better post-disaster recovery?
• How does the built environment impact social cohesion, behavioral health, and well-being, and how can this knowledge be transformed into resilience-building strategies?
• What are the best ways to incorporate healthy community outcomes into transportation planning? Are there best practices for educating both internal and external stakeholders on this?
• What risk-based strategies can be employed during recovery planning to reduce physical, psychological, economic, and social consequences of future disasters?

HEALTHY HOUSING RECOVERY

• What evidence is available demonstrating improved health and well-being outcomes resulting from a collaborative approach to housing recovery that integrates design, social/behavioral, and health perspectives?

• How can temporary housing strategies be designed to improve social connectedness and associated impacts on health?
• How does investment in post-disaster housing reconstruction that complies with green and healthy housing building standards translate to a return on investment in long-term health outcomes?
• What are the key barriers to adoption of green building standards for post-disaster housing reconstruction?

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