Abstract
Intellectual/Developmental disabilities, or I/DDs, refers to a wide variety of conditions that can affect a person’s ability to process information and their environment. Individuals with I/DDs have a plethora of unique vulnerabilities before, during, and after major disasters. Some of these include difficulty understanding instructions, a tendency to become more easily overwhelmed by external stimuli, and reliance on 1-1 support. Despite this, very little evidence exists both in the research and the practice of emergency management to demonstrate that they have been included in meaningful ways. Many state Emergency Operations Plans, or EOPs, fail to acknowledge intellectually/developmentally disabled individuals as a population in need of additional resources and assistance during disasters. Research that is meant to address the needs of vulnerable populations in the disaster realm either doesn’t acknowledge I/DDs at all or provides only a very brief discussion, despite providing in-depth discussions for other vulnerabilities.
Emergency management personnel can address this issue through a variety of solutions. These include but are not limited to increasing awareness of what I/DDs are and how they may be impacted by disasters; facilitating communication with individuals with I/DDs, caregivers, service providers, and other community partners; and implementing specialized training specifically designed for addressing the needs of intellectually/developmentally disabled people during a disaster. While it is difficult to fully address the needs of anyone during a disaster, let alone those with specific additional needs, the ultimate goal of this paper is to ensure that there are at least more consistent efforts made to address the needs of those with I/DDs before, during, and after major disasters.
Semester/Year of Award
Fall 2025
Mentor
Dr. Chad S. Foster
Mentor Department Affiliation
Safety, Security, and Emergency Management
Access Options
Open Access Thesis
Degree Name
Honors Scholars
Degree Level
Bachelors
Department
Safety, Security, and Emergency Management
Recommended Citation
Ogorek, Elizabeth, "What About Us? The Exclusion of Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in the Disaster Planning Process." (2025). Honors Theses. 1112.
https://encompass.eku.edu/honors_theses/1112
