N Epidemiological Study Post Cyclone Fani: An Insight of Our Disaster Risk Reduction and Relief Services

Abstract

Introduction: Every year cyclones hit India, impacting the population living along the coastline, the infrastructure, and inland areas within India. Multiple bodies of evidence suggest that cyclonic storms disrupt regular health systems depending on the category of the storm. The cascading risks emerging from such disasters present a more complex risk scenario for sustainable development.Methodology: A cross-sectional study on 370 cyclone victims from May 23, 2019 to May 27, 2019 using purposive sampling was carried out at 12 medical relief centres. SPSS version 22 was used to analyse the data.Results: Of the total 370 participants, majority (216, 58.4%) belonged to the age group of 35-64 years, and 200 (54.1%) victims were women. Majority (290, 78.4%) were married and 240 (64.9%) belonged to families with more than four family members.336 (90.8%) participants reported to the medical camp with disease-related signs and symptoms post-disaster while 34 (9.2%) sought medical services for injuries alone.266 (71.9%) victims reported receiving early warning signals regarding the storm through media (radio/ TV/ newspapers/ cell phones), while 104 (28.1%) received the information through neighbours and friends.Conclusion: A social determinant of health approach from a risk reduction perspective needs to be nurtured while providing rescue, relief, and rehabilitation in disaster management operations. This has scope to additionally factor in extreme weather events and public health consequences that will further aggravate in coming years.