title: Barriers to recovery in communities exposed to disasters: Sri Lankan voices speak.
abstract: Disasters experienced by a community place all members at risk for physical and psychological harm. While natural resilience may help many to recover, there may be barriers that hinder the recovery process. This qualitative study was conducted to examine barriers to recovery in a community impacted by both war and the tsunami. A group of 43 ethnically diverse Sri Lankans (F = 63%) participated in six focus groups and provided their perspectives on barriers they perceived to impede their recovery from traumatic events. Grounded-theory-based data analysis revealed culture-general and culture-specific socio-economic, environmental, sociocultural, and individual barriers that participants identified as impeding their recovery. Interventions and health policies targeting these groups could focus on helping communities to overcome these barriers as a means of facilitating recovery in these beleaguered communities.
authors.affiliation: California State University , Los Angeles, California , USA.
authors.forename: Gaithri A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Fernando
authors.forename: Ashley
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wilkins
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004190:Disasters; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000067073:Psychological Trauma / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D036301:Qualitative Research; D013188:Sri Lanka / Q000208:ethnology; D057192:Tsunamis; D014857:Warfare; D055815:Young Adult