Citation

Bowie SL. Crisis Interv. Time Ltd. Treat. 2003; 6(3): 171-184.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2003, Harwood Academic Publishers)

DOI

10.1080/713638932

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The research is an examination of a collaborative crisis intervention and assessment experience coordinated by the Miami-Dade Housing Agency (MDHA) after Hurricane Andrew destroyed eight public housing communities that housed over 1,000 residents in August 1992. A local school of social work coordinated with the MDHA and several social service agencies to train 30 students to do crisis intervention with older adult public housing residents (N=225). The assessments ascertained that the respondents had multiple chronic health problems and in many cases needed medical and/or mental health intervention immediately. Some psychosomatic problems were a direct result of the hurricane trauma. Implications are discussed in relation to public housing authority (PHA) responses to ongoing disasters and the need for PHAs to take a leadership role in disaster planning for older adult residents.