Biomaterial Database

Lessons learned from the Great East Japan Earthquake: The need for disaster preparedness in the area of disaster mental health for children. 2014

Shuei Kozu, and Hiroaki Homma

Clinical Social Worker, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts; PhD Candidate, Simmons College School of Social Work, Boston, Massachusetts.

The Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011 brought unprecedented challenges to individuals, families, and communities of the Tohoku region in Japan. Children are especially vulnerable to the postdisaster risk factors that impact their ability to heal. The destruction of the infrastructure by the disasters made it more challenging to reach out to children in an area where the stigma against mental illness is persistent. The authors share their experiences, what they heard from patients, and their reflections on lessons learned. The authors recommend the development of a coordinated mental health response system in preparation for the next disaster.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007564	Japan	A country in eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula. The capital is Tokyo.	Bonin Islands
D002648	Child	A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL.	Children
D004189	Disaster Planning	Procedures outlined for the care of casualties and the maintenance of services in disasters.	Disaster Management,Emergency Preparedness,Disaster Relief Planning,Management, Disaster,Planning, Disaster,Planning, Disaster Relief,Preparedness, Emergency,Relief Planning, Disaster
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D001523	Mental Disorders	Psychiatric illness or diseases manifested by breakdowns in the adaptational process expressed primarily as abnormalities of thought, feeling, and behavior producing either distress or impairment of function.	Mental Illness,Psychiatric Diseases,Psychiatric Disorders,Psychiatric Illness,Behavior Disorders,Diagnosis, Psychiatric,Mental Disorders, Severe,Psychiatric Diagnosis,Illness, Mental,Mental Disorder,Mental Disorder, Severe,Mental Illnesses,Psychiatric Disease,Psychiatric Disorder,Psychiatric Illnesses,Severe Mental Disorder,Severe Mental Disorders
D055866	Earthquakes	Sudden slips on a geological fault, and the resulting ground shaking and radiated seismic energy caused by the slips, or by volcanic or magmatic activity, or other sudden stress changes in the earth. Faults are fractures along which the blocks of EARTH crust on either side have moved relative to one another parallel to the fracture.	Earthquake