Elizabeth A Newnham1,2, Satchit Balsari3, Rex Pui Kin Lam4, Shraddha Kashyap5, Phuong Pham6, Emily Y Y Chan7, Kaylie Patrick3, Jennifer Leaning3. 1. FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, USA. enewnham@hsph.harvard.edu. 2. School of Psychology and Speech Pathology, Curtin University, Perth, Australia. enewnham@hsph.harvard.edu. 3. FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, USA. 4. Emergency Medicine Unit, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China. 5. School of Psychology, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia. 6. Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, Harvard University, Cambridge, USA. 7. Collaborating Centre for Oxford University and CUHK for Disaster and Medical Humanitarian Response, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To investigate specific challenges to Hong Kong's capacity for effective disaster response, we assessed perceived barriers to evacuation and citizens' self-efficacy. METHODS: Global positioning system software was used to determine random sampling locations across Hong Kong, weighted by population density. The resulting sample of 1023 participants (46.5% female, mean age 40.74 years) were invited to complete questionnaires on emergency preparedness, barriers to evacuation and self-efficacy. Latent profile analysis and multinomial logistic regression were used to identify self-efficacy profiles and predictors of profile membership. RESULTS: Only 11% of the sample reported feeling prepared to respond to a disaster. If asked to evacuate in an emergency, 41.9% of the sample cited significant issues that would preclude them from doing so. Self-efficacy was negatively associated with barriers to disaster response so that participants reporting higher levels of self-efficacy cited fewer perceived barriers to evacuation. CONCLUSIONS: Hong Kong has established effective strategies for emergency response, but concerns regarding evacuation and mobilisation remain. The findings indicate that improving self-efficacy for disaster response has potential to increase evacuation readiness.
OBJECTIVES: To investigate specific challenges to Hong Kong's capacity for effective disaster response, we assessed perceived barriers to evacuation and citizens' self-efficacy. METHODS: Global positioning system software was used to determine random sampling locations across Hong Kong, weighted by population density. The resulting sample of 1023 participants (46.5% female, mean age 40.74 years) were invited to complete questionnaires on emergency preparedness, barriers to evacuation and self-efficacy. Latent profile analysis and multinomial logistic regression were used to identify self-efficacy profiles and predictors of profile membership. RESULTS: Only 11% of the sample reported feeling prepared to respond to a disaster. If asked to evacuate in an emergency, 41.9% of the sample cited significant issues that would preclude them from doing so. Self-efficacy was negatively associated with barriers to disaster response so that participants reporting higher levels of self-efficacy cited fewer perceived barriers to evacuation. CONCLUSIONS: Hong Kong has established effective strategies for emergency response, but concerns regarding evacuation and mobilisation remain. The findings indicate that improving self-efficacy for disaster response has potential to increase evacuation readiness.
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