Experiences of individuals with disabilities sheltering during natural disasters: an integrative review

Abstract

Natural disasters are growing in intensity and frequency worldwide, effecting over 1.5 billion people in the past decade. Individuals with a disability are at greater risk of injury and death than are other populations. Individuals with disabilities often have specific needs leading to difficulties when seeking shelter during disaster events. Emergency shelters are generally not purposefully built to accommodate such requirements. To assess the extent of this, a review was undertaken to synthesise current literature on the experience of individuals with disabilities in emergency shelters and to identify gaps to inform future research. Initial searches identified 185 articles and six studies were included in the review. Synthesis of study findings highlighted context-specific factors of emergency shelter experiences on individuals with disabilities during natural disasters. These factors were the physical, social and attitudinal environments. Quaill and colleagues (2018) reported the need for meaningful engagement with individuals with disabilities in disaster planning broadly. This paper identifies the importance disability inclusive risk reduction specific to shelter planning to allow for safety and maintenance of independence. The small body of research identified indicates that this aspect is under-researched in Australia as well as internationally. This has implications for the understanding of disaster risk reduction requirements for individuals with a disability.