Removing Barriers to Evacuation: Evaluation of a Preparedness Intervention

Background and Purpose: Research has demonstrated that the key reason for failure to evacuate in disasters is concern for pets. A recent survey indicated that the majority of pet-owners admit that they would disobey mandatory evacuation orders to remain with pets.  The unwillingness to evacuate without pets has presented a major obstacle to disaster relief and recovery, impacting individual households as well as first responders. In addition, pet care needs are a key reason health care personnel do not report for work during a disaster. Frightened animals that are left behind also pose health risks, as serious animal bites were one of the primary trauma injuries by Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) workers in Texas following Hurricane Ike. As such pet preparedness is critical not only for general household preparedness but also for relief and recovery efforts. In spite of these statistics households with pets have been underrepresented in preparedness literature. This study evaluates an education intervention to increase preparedness levels among households with pets as a mechanism for increasing evacuation and safe sheltering behaviors.

This study has the following objectives:

#1:  To conduct a quantitative survey of pet owners establishing baseline data regarding the extent to which people with pets 1) have a personal disaster plan, and 2) have a pet-specific disaster plan. Based on preliminary studies we hypothesized that pet owners are no more prepared for disasters than general population estimates.

#2:  To evaluate and pilot-test the effectiveness of a brief, psycho-educational intervention in increasing baseline preparedness levels of pet owners as measured by personal/household preparedness and pet preparedness. We hypothesize that the psycho-educational intervention will result in higher levels of preparedness on quantitative assessment at post-intervention.

 

Methods: This presentation discusses the implementation and evaluation of a novel intervention targeting a high-risk population problematic in disasters, namely, pet owners. The study implements a one-group pre-test post-test community-education model for pet owners in the Birmingham, Alabama community. Using a convenience sample, researchers surveyed over 200 households, administering a preparedness pre-assessment, information survey and delivering a brief, education intervention. Participants were contacted at 30-45 days post intervention to complete the post-assessment.

 

Results: One hundred nine participants completed both pre and post assessments with 348 participants completing pre assessment only. Results indicate that there was a slight increase in pet preparedness (p<.10), however there was no difference in general household preparedness from pre to post assessment. In general households that completed both pre and post assessments were better prepared than population estimates, with an average score of 8.28 on 10 elements of preparedness. Correlations and descriptive statistics are provided to explore overall preparedness and disaster messaging.

Implications and Conclusion: Results indicate the need for future research to determine reasons why persons fail to evacuate in spite of preparedness efforts. Contrary to initial assumptions, households with pets display a degree of preparedness, however preparedness efforts do not necessarily translate to protective behaviors.