Issue link: https://blog.providence.org/i/1367431
37 groups, fare far worse than others in recovering from disasters? What makes communities vulnerable after a disaster? Some unexpected communities, not traditionally defined as the most vulnerable, lack the social cohesion and capital that provides a foundation of resilience and self-healing. Older adults and those with disabilities are vulnerable. Lower-middle class renters are vulnerable to rising housing costs and find themselves at risk of homelessness. All fire victims are vulnerable to the post-traumatic stress and other behavioral health con- cerns, especially those who are isolated, without a strong community connection, and who do not know how to access services. There is no "correct" approach to defining equity and vulnerability. A deep, honest, and in- clusive discussion on equity and vulnerability in post-disaster settings could benefit the goal of effective collective action and collaboration. Commit to strategies that include immediate relief, medium term recovery, and foster long-term and ongoing community resilience. The literature and much of Napa's and Sonoma's experience indicate that much of the activity and funding go to the initial phases of disaster relief and recovery. After 6 months to a year, many funders, CBOs and government agencies would like to retreat from the extremely diffi- cult, secondary task of disaster relief and recovery. What we know is that long-term recovery and resilience is absolutely crucial to true community wellness. Disaster response strategy must include the three phases: relief, recovery, and resilience. Community resilience is paramount to disaster response. From the public health perspective, it is "the sustained ability of communities to withstand, adapt to, and recover from adversity." 24 It is achieved by capacity building, community empowerment, social connectedness and capital creation, improving community health, wellness, and community systems. It is important to focus on the resilience of vulnerable groups, which in disasters, might be expanded. While community resilience is an important factor to achieve community and population health, it is truly important to disaster response as well. For this reason, it should not only be an on-going investment and activity, but one that is also incorporated into any collective disaster response plan and individual organizational or agency decision-making. Define (and share) success measures. Those who have faced a disaster like the wildfires of 2017 know deeply that there are mul- tiple phases of disaster response. There is immediate relief and recovery, and there is also resilience. Not everyone has the exact same definition or the same timeline for each of these phases, but most, if not all, responders know that addressing the needs associated with each phase is crucial to getting a community back on track and thriving. In order to evaluate the success of efforts and initiatives to fulfill those needs, it is important to identify desired out- comes for each phase, to identify methods to measure those outcomes, and to store and communicate them. 6 7 24 https://www.phe.gov/Preparedness/planning/abc/Pages/community-resilience.aspx