SESSION DESCRIPTION

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In 2021 New Orleans’ unexpectedly had a mass shelter-in-place as the rapidly intensifying Hurricane Ida came ashore as a category 4 storm.  While most people were happy to stay home rather than evacuate, the storm laid waste to the metro area’s utility infrastructure and left thousands of people, including many elderly, without power, water, or medical services for weeks.  Additionally, the lack of information and services left notable psychological effects on people.  This presentation will explore the impacts of the mass shelter-in-place on the elderly at one long-term care facility and what can be done to address these issues going forward.  

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About the Presenter:

 

Jacquelyn Marchand, PhD 

Jacquelyn Marchand was born and raised in New Orleans.  She earned her BA and MA in Geography focusing on natural hazards and her PhD in Urban Studies focusing on disaster planning and emergency management for the elderly all from the University of New Orleans.   

Jacquelyn has twelve years of experience in long-term care.  She manages day-to-day business operations and continuity as well as facility and population security and resiliency for all disasters and emergencies.   

Real-life experiences with Tropical Storm Isaac, COVID-19, and Hurricane Ida have highlighted for Jacquelyn the shortcomings in support for long-term care facilities as well as the need for improved planning and response in long-term care facilities.  These experiences have helped her to take a more proactive and adaptive approach to disaster preparedness and emergency management, reaching out directly to the elderly population to discover the best way to keep them safe and feeling secured.