During Hurricane Sandy, thousands of vulnerable people, many of them older adults, remained isolated in dark, unheated apartments without sufficient food, running water, or medical assistance. Twenty-four of the 43 reported deaths in NYC were people over age 60. In response, The New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM) has launched an initiative to engage multiple stakeholders to work collaboratively toward creating better formal and informal support systems for New York’s community-dwelling older adults before, during, and after disasters and other mass emergency events, such as power outages and heat waves.

This initiative calls upon our collective responsibility to cultivate improved community-based networks to protect older adults in disasters and thereby preserve and leverage their invaluable social and intellectual capital. To this end, the initiative seeks to engage older adults and non-governmental organizations that are often critical players in emergency response but are not traditionally involved in emergency planning. This informed and inclusive approach to preparedness and response will maximize assets to create more resilient and elder-friendly communities.

The project will identify best practices, generate recommendations, and mobilize key partners to implement response plans for older adults, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable populations that include:

• Effective risk communication;
• Timely identification of individuals in need;
• Equitable deployment of resources; and
• Multi-sector and multi-agency coordination of volunteers and services.

Building on the successful model of NYAM’s Age-Friendly NYC partnership with the Mayor’s Office and New York City Council, the project’s action steps will include:

• Convening an Older Adults & Disasters Policy Advisory Committee that will engage city government agencies, community and faith-based organizations, private industry, and the local business community;
• Engaging in primary research with older adults and service providers in five regions seriously affected by Hurricane Sandy;
• Generating a review of existing literature and soliciting input from leading experts in disaster response and recovery;
• Hosting events that facilitate cross-sector discussion and cooperation; and
• Issuing a report in 2014 with policy recommendations for public agencies and private sector groups.

Funding support has been provided by The New York Community Trust and the Altman Foundation. For more information about the project or if you are interested in partnering with us on this effort, email Lindsay Goldman or call her at 212-419-3562. Please visit this page for more information in the months to come.