Problems and solutions from the municipal perspective, volume 1 (Preparing for allergic diseases in disasters)

Abstract

In the event of a disaster, patients that have allergic diseases are considered "people requiring special care" as there are certain environmental measures and dietary requirements that must be taken into consideration for their safety.

Although the role of municipality in disaster is not small, few studies have examined municipalities' disaster preparedness for allergic diseases.

To clearly understand the current state of preparedness and extract the unmet needs from the municipalities, we conducted a questionnaire survey on the preparedness for allergic diseases in municipalities across Japan. As a result, the following problems were identified: insufficient stockpiling of allergy-preventive foods and milk, uneven stockpiling by city size, insufficient disclosure of stockpiling information, insufficient countermeasures for prolonged disasters, and insufficient sharing of stockpiling information. The reasons for this were thought to include a lack of basic knowledge about allergic diseases and the inability of local governments to understand the current status of allergy patients during disasters. On the other hand, "enlightenment of self-help from doctors to patients" was mentioned as an initiative that the government would like the academic society to take.