The impact of the San Diego wildfires on a general mental health population residing in evacuation areas.
San Diego County Mental Health system clients completed a questionnaire after the October 2007 wildfires. As compared to those not in an evacuation area, those residing in an evacuation area reported significantly more impact of the fires. Clients who evacuated were most affected, followed by those in an evacuation area who did not evacuate. Evacuation strongly impacted client-reported emotional effects of the fire, confusion about whether to evacuate, and ability to obtain medications. Gender and clinical diagnosis interacted with evacuation status for some fire impact variables. Loss of control and disruption of routine are discussed as possibly related factors.
Health Services Research Center, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, MC0994, La Jolla, CA 92093-0994, USA. stally@ucsd.edu
Steven
S
Tally
Ashley
A
Levack
Andrew J
AJ
Sarkin
Todd
T
Gilmer
Erik J
EJ
Groessl
D000328:Adult; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D002140:California; D003156:Community Mental Health Services; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D004190:Disasters; D060447:Emergency Shelter; D005260:Female; D005390:Fires; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D012559:Schizophrenia; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D012737:Sex Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires