Indexes of Caring for Elderly in Earthquakes According to the Iranian Experience: A Qualitative Study.

OBJECTIVE: The elderly are especially susceptible to death and injury in disasters. This study aimed to identify indexes of caring for elderly people in an earthquake according to the Iranian experience.

METHODS: This qualitative study was conducted during 2014-2016 by use of the content analysis technique. Data were collected through individual deep interviews with the elderly and people with experience providing services to the elderly during earthquakes in an urban area of Iran. The data were analyzed by use of the Graneheim and Lundman method.

RESULTS: Seven categories emerged: vulnerability of elderly people, physiological indexes, psychological indexes, economic indexes, religious and spiritual indexes, health indexes, and security indexes. There were 3 uncategorized issues: "There is no specific protocol for the elderly," "The need to design plans based on age care," and "Aid organizations."

CONCLUSIONS: Implementing a comprehensive plan would not only save lives but decrease suffering and enable effective use of available resources. Due to the crucial role of the prehospital care system in disasters, there is a need for further investigation based on the results of this study to develop strategies for improving the system. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2018;12:493-501).