Disasters and Emergencies

When making your Emergency Plan it’s important to:

• Consider your health, social connections, transport options, personal supports, communication, assistance animals or pets and your living situation.
• Include any special requirements such as mobility aids, life-saving or assistive technology needs.
• Make an Emergency Kit and include your essential medications and equipment, prescriptions or a list of your medications and contact details for medical services, specialists and GPs.
• Identify a support network to help you such as neighbours, friends, community groups or relatives who can check in on you and help you evacuate if you needed. Include several people from different locations and give them a copy of your Emergency Plan.
• Communicate your needs if you have to leave your home and go to an evacuation centre. Let staff at the centre know about any health conditions and medication needs.

Key Tips

• My Health Record is secure platform storing your medical history, allergies and medications online. In emergencies, healthcare providers can access your medical details through My Health Record. It is important you set this up before an emergency or disaster. Your doctor can help you set this up and upload all your essential medical information. You can also download the My Health app.
• Use Electronic Prescriptions – ask your doctor to issue you electronic scripts (eScripts) or ask your pharmacist to set up an Active Script List, this allows your doctor or pharmacist to access these scripts in an emergency.
• Stay informed about potential triggers or risks associated with your individual health needs and regularly review your Emergency Plan and Emergency Kit.
• Bushfire smoke may worsen many health conditions, be prepared and understand your health risks.
• Extreme heat may worsen many health conditions or impact at risk groups, be prepared and understand your heat risk.
• Power outages can cause a severe risk if you, or someone you care for, relies on electricity for life sustaining or assistive technology. It’s important you are ready for a power or water outage.

National Resources

• Red Cross – provides the Rediplan template, and the Get Prepared App so you can create an Emergency Plan on your phone or device.
• Collaborating4Inclusion – provides the Person-Centred Emergency Preparedness (P-CEP) tool that can be used by anyone but has been co-designed and tested with and for people with disabilities.

The Aboriginal Health and Medical Research Council of NSW have resources to help you prepare for bushfires.

Heatwaves in Australia cause more deaths than any other natural hazard. NSW Health has Aboriginal Beat the Heat resources to help you prepare and look after your health.

The Dementia Carer Ready Guide is designed to be used in conjunction with the Red Cross ReadiPlan, and has tailored information and checklists for carers and people with dementia to work through to help you prepare.

Carers NSW provide the Care2Prepare Household Readiness Toolkit to help carers, and people receiving care, develop a tailored Emergency Plan including practical templates such as Care Routine Cards.

Key Tips

When creating an Emergency Plan, it’s important to consider:

• If the person can’t drive, document the plan for their aided evacuation from the home.
• Adding some personal information such as likes and dislikes, daily routine, language spoke at home, calming strategies etc.
• Identifying a support network to help such as neighbours, community groups and/or relatives. Include several people from different locations and give a copy of the Emergency Plan to these contacts.
• Adding comfort items and simple activities to their Emergency Kit.

The National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS) has various Sick Day Plan templates available. Talk to your doctor or diabetes educator about helping you creating one.

If you are insulin-dependent, it’s a good idea to create a diabetic specific Emergency Plan and Kit. NDSS has preparing for disasters information and a diabetes specific Emergency Plan including how to prepare an Emergency Kit.

Key Tips

When creating your Emergency Plan and Kit, it’s important to consider:

• Stress, changes in physical activity, bushfire smoke and the food you eat, can all effect your blood glucose levels. During an emergency, your body processes glucose differently. You should check your blood glucose levels regularly during and after an emergency and adjust insulin accordingly.
• During the initial disaster response, an increase in cortisol can result in increased blood glucose levels. This effect can continue up to months after a disaster due to decreased physical activity, increased food intake, a change in routine, anxiety, decreased access to glucose monitoring equipment and changes in priorities.
• Extreme heat may cause damage to blood vessels and nerves as complications of diabetes may impair the body’s mechanisms to regulate temperature. People with diabetes can also get dehydrated more quickly.
• Foot care is extremely important during a disaster. To minimise wounds and infection, you should wear socks and closed-toe comfortable shoes.
• Do not freeze the insulin or store insulin directly adjacent to ice. If using an ice brick in the insulated bag, wrap the ice brick in a cloth before adding the insulin to the bag.

Heart Foundation Australia provides information on how air pollution, heatwaves and bushfires can impact your heart health.

Key Tips

When creating your Emergency Plan and Kit, it’s important to consider:

• Extreme heat can put strain on the heart and may bring about dizziness, collapse, heart attack or stroke.
• Elevated blood pressure during a disaster may increase risk of complications if you have pre-existing hypertension and history of heart attack or stroke. It’s a good idea to store a portable blood pressure machine with your Emergency Kit, check your blood pressure regularly and seek medical advice if blood pressure is higher than your normal readings.
• Bushfire smoke can worsen heart conditions such as angina. Avoid exposure by evacuating early, staying indoors, using the air‑conditioner on the internal air recycling setting and wearing a mask if outdoors.

You can call Kidney Health Australia on 1800 454 363 for support on how you can prepare.

If you use home dialysis, power outages can also stop your tap water and if you use water for medical care it can be serious. Its important you are ready for a power or water outage.

Key Tips

When creating your Emergency Plan, it’s important to consider:

• Kidney disease may impact the body’s response to extreme heat, with changes in blood pressure and risks of dehydration.
• Keep a list of back-up dialysis units and hospitals near your area in case you can’t access your normal unit.

Lung Foundation Australia provide a COPD Action Plan to be completed in conjunction with your specialist, GP or nurse.

Key Tips

When creating your Emergency Plan, it’s important to consider:

• Bushfire smoke can worsen lung conditions such as asthma and COPD. Avoid exposure by evacuating early, staying indoors, using the air‑conditioner on the internal air recycling setting and wearing a mask if outdoors.
• Continued access to inhaler medications is important. Keep a second supply of inhalers in a safe place off‑site such as in your handbag, car, or at a family member’s house, in case you are not able to return home to access your usual supply.
• Monitor air quality – readings are updated hourly and a daily air quality forecast is made at 4 pm each day.

People with pre-existing mental health conditions, may be at increased risk during disasters and emergencies, including heatwaves and power outages, due to social isolation and the complexity of your health conditions.

Being emotionally prepared can boost your confidence, reduce your stress and help you feel more in control. This can lower your risk of long-term mental health issues caused by the trauma of a disaster or emergency.

The Australian Psychological Society outlines 4 steps to being psychologically prepared, using the acronym AIME – Anticipate Identify Manage and Engage. Find out more about how AIME can help you.

The Australian Red Cross also provides a Psychological Preparedness for Disasters Guide to help you prepare.

Key Tips

When creating your Emergency Plan, it’s important to consider:

• If you are worried about how you might feel or cope during a disaster or emergency, talk to your health provider and ask them to help you make a plan for how you will keep safe with strategies and emergency supports.
• Some medications may impair your body’s ability to regulate temperature so it’s important to stay cool in extremely hot weather and understand your heat risk.

For people with neurological health conditions symptoms such as heat sensitivity, vision impairment, difficulty with walking or processing information, may make responding to a crisis more challenging.

Extreme heat may worsen some neurological conditions like multiple sclerosis or spinal cord injury because they can impact your body’s ability to regulate body temperature.

Key Resources

• MS Australia has a Crisis Toolkit to support people living with a disability or chronic health condition such as Multiple Sclerosis prepare for disasters and emergencies.

The Person-Centred Emergency Preparedness (P-CEP) tool supports people to be prepared.

Key Tips

When creating your Emergency Plan, it’s important to:

1. Identify your strengths and support needs in everyday life.
2. Know your level of emergency preparedness and learn about disaster risk.
3. Plan for how you will manage your support needs in an emergency.
4. Communicate the plan with the people in your support network and address gaps together.

Heat risk: people over 65 years

Collaborating4Inclusion provides the Person-Centred Emergency Preparedness (P-CEP) tool that can has been co-designed and tested with and for people with disabilities

The NDIS provides a range of information and resources for NDIS participants which are accessible in different languages and have different accessibility options

Carers NSW have information and resources to help carers, and people receiving care, develop a tailored disaster plan including practical templates such as Care Routine Cards.

Key Tips

When making your Emergency Plan think about your social connections, transport options, any life-saving or assistive technology needs, personal supports, communication, assistance animals or pets and your living situation.

• Identify your strengths and your support needs in everyday life.
• Know your level of emergency preparedness and learn about your disaster risks.
• Plan for how you will manage your support needs in an emergency.
• Communicate your Plan with the people in your support network and address any gaps together.

Maintaining or making new connections with family, friends and neighbours will help keep you safe and will be a vital part of your emergency planning.

Key Tips

• The NSW Government has hints and tips on how to get to know your neighbours and how you can help each other be prepared for disasters and emergencies.
• You can find other ways to increase your connections through our My Health Connector website.
• We have a variety of services that can help you improve your social connections.

If you are pregnant, you may be more sensitive to the effects of disasters and emergencies including extreme heat and smoke.

Babies and children are also more vulnerable to these events, particularly heat-related illness because they are less able to control their own body temperature and make choices to stop themselves from overheating.

Key Resources

• NSW Health has some helpful hints and tips on how to prepare yourself and your children for heatwaves.
• The Australian Breastfeeding Association has some useful emergency planning resources.
• Emerging Minds has resources for parents and caregivers on how to minimise your children’s stress and anxiety in a disaster or emergency and how to cope well yourself.