title: How did rehabilitation professionals act when faced with the Great East Japan earthquake and disaster? Descriptive epidemiology of disability and an interim report of the relief activities of the ten Rehabilitation-Related Organizations.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Inter-organizational coordination is important for rehabilitation disaster relief. The 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Disaster was unprecedented, being geographically widespread and multifaceted. Faced with the crisis, rehabilitation professionals established the 10 Rehabilitation-Related Organizations of Rehabilitation Support Service (10-RRO). The objectives of this paper are to provide descriptive epidemiology and assess the activities of 10-RRO.
  
  
  METHODS
  Descriptive.
  
  
  METHODS
  Epidemiological data on disability were collected, mainly from official sources. Relief activities were reviewed from daily reports, and the preparedness, initial response and functioning of 10-RRO were assessed with a questionnaire directed at 36 executives of individual organizations.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The disaster was characterized by a very low ratio of injuries to death of 0.372, and an odds ratio of deaths among disabled persons of 2.32. 10-RRO provided relief activities at 3 shelters. The total number of dispatch days ranged from 107 to 146, and the cumulative number of professionals and evacuees served was 1,202 and 7,300, respectively. Support activities included prevention of immobilization, daily life support, environmental improvement and transition to temporary housing. The questionnaire survey revealed poor preparedness, satisfactory initial response and support activities, and problems of data collection and advocacy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The disaster was characterized by minimal trauma and a great need for preventing immobilization. This first collaborative endeavour was successful.
authors.affiliation: Japanese Association of Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan. meigenliukeio@mac.com
authors.forename: Meigen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kohzuki
authors.forename: Akinori
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hamamura
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.forename: Masami
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Saitoh
authors.forename: Masaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kurihara
authors.forename: Kazuto
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Handa
authors.forename: Haruki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Junichi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fukaura
authors.forename: Ryuji
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.forename: Takao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Nobuou
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Matsuzaka
mesh_terms: D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003657:Decision Making; D004189:Disaster Planning; D055866:Earthquakes / Q000401:mortality* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016021:Epidemiologic Studies; D014943:Global Health; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012066:Relief Work; D012944:Social Support; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D057192:Tsunamis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*