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Hurricane Guide 2006	Hurricane Preparation Guide 2006

Special-needs shelters should bea last resort

The shelters offer basic monitoring. A private home usually is a more comfortable option.

By Times Staff
Published April 16, 2006

When a hurricane threatens, people with special medical needs who have to evacuate will probably be most comfortable at the home of a relative or friend, assuming they can be appropriately cared for there.

But if the alternative is a special-needs shelter, now is a good time to register with your county emergency operations center or other agency so workers can contact you and arrange evacuation at hurricane time.

Who typically goes to a special-needs shelter? People who are too sick to go to a Red Cross shelter but not sick enough to go to a hospital.

That includes people on oxygen or kidney dialysis, those dependent on electric-powered life-support systems, people with severe asthma who must be in an air-conditioned space, and those with other conditions that limit their abilities and mobility.

Assuming that your medical needs can be met at the home of a relative or friend, that should be your first option, said Gary Vickers, emergency operations director for Pinellas. Shelters are "far from an ideal situation and they're not a trip to the Holiday Inn."

Special-needs shelters provide basic medical monitoring but they are not hospitals. Those who go there should be accompanied by a caregiver.

If your medical condition requires that you be hospitalized during a disaster, consult with your physician about getting an authorization letter for preadmission.

[Last modified April 13, 2006, 16:11:51]