Showing papers on "Emergency management published in 1971"

A Mid-1970 Report on the National Flood Insurance Program

Abstract: The authors, in an effort to report on the progress of the National Flood Insurance program, interviewed knowledgeable people in all levels of government, insurance and housing industries, and the public. Responses of the sources were analyzed in terms of implications for land use and control, tax revenues, property values and employment. Based on this analysis, the authors conclude that despite the problems and inadequacies, the program affords the potential for reduction in loss of life and property damage caused by flood, as a result of the long-term adjustments in land use. It also offers the possibility of a more efficient and equitable method of dealing with flood losses than charity or disaster relief programs. Further, it affords an opportunity for development of economically sound flood and other disaster insurance by the private insurance industry alone. Annually, floods in the United States cause the death of many persons and extensive property damage despite increasingly sophisticated weather forecasting methods and flood warning and control measures. Floods occur in rather well defined local areas, but with considerable variation from year to year in frequency of occurrence and magnitude of damage. Because of these characteristics of floods and their catastrophic financial consequences for many flood victims, the feasiRobert S. Felton, D.B.A., C.L.U., C.P.C.U., is Pan-American Life Insurance Research Professor at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. William K. Ghee, Ph.D., C.L.U., C.P.C.U., is Associate Professor of Finance and Insurance at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. John E. Stinton, D.B.A., C.L.U., is Professor of Business Administration at the University of South Carolina. This study was made possible by a research grant from the American Risk and Insurance Association. The authors wish to thank the Association for its financial assistance and the many people who provided information for this study. This paper was presented at the 1970 Annual Meeting of A.R.I.A. bility of flood insurance has often been suggested. Interest in flood insurance was particularly intense following disastrous floods in 1951, 1955, and 1961, and the Alaska earthquake and flood in 1964. Hurricane Betsy in September 19-65 provided the final impetus for legislation' which directed the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development to undertake a study of various programs which might be established to help provide financial assistance to those suffering property losses caused by floods and other natural disasters. The Department then conducted an extensive study of the subject under the direction of Dr. Marion Clawson. This study2 was completed and forwarded to the President and to Congress in 1966. On August 1, 1968, Congress enacted the National Flood Insur' Section 5 of the Southeast Hurricane Disaster Relief Act of 1965 (Public Law 89-339). 2 U.S. Senate Committee on Banking and Currency, 89th Congress, Insurance and Other Programs for Financial Assistance to Flood Vicims (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Govermment Printing Office, 1966).

Chest injuries;: Physiologic principles and emergency management

Abstract: This monograph is prefaced by the statement that the book has been prepared for the internist without special training in cardiology, the general practitioner, and the medical student or nurse interested in cardiology. The authors are too modest. They display a sophisticated approach to the physiologic background of cardiovascular disorders that will make this volume a valuable addition to the library of most hemodynamically oriented cardiologists. The contributors to the various sections are all associated with the St. Vincent's Hospital and Medical Center in New York. The principal editors are the directors of the Cardiopulmonary Laboratory, and as such have been able to draw upon their wide experience in cardiac catheterization to illustrate the points made in each section with abundant dynamic data. In particular, the chapters on chronic valvular disease, myocardial infarction, and pulmonary heart disease are well documented and amply illustrated. There is an excellent discussion on the decision making involved in the recommendation for or against valve replacement. Newer concepts of His bundle electrocardiography, the biophysics of cardiac muscle contraction, coronary arteriography, and obstructive cardiomyopathy are covered with considerable clarity. Of special note is the chapter on pulmonary problems in the patient with heart disease. This contains a lucid exposition of cardiorespiratory physiology including the pathophysiology of alveolar collapse, venoarterial shunting, the shock lung, and the proper ventilatory therapy in these complications of myocardial infarction. The authors emphasize the important contribution that defective blood-gas exchange plays in arrhythmia production and in the genesis of left ventricular failure. While the coverage of a few of the topics is somewhat sketchy, this monograph is by and large easily readable, quite comprehensive, and surprisingly well oriented toward the physiologic basis ef cardiovascular disease. It can be recommended not only to the narrow audience the authors may have originally aimed at, but to all cardiologists. HOWARD L. Moscovrrz, M.D.

Emergency medical services: status and opportunities in federal, state and local interaction

Abstract: Community incentives for allocating more energy and material resources to emergency health services are addressed: visibility, definition of success, low level of competition, acceptance of paramedical personnel, and impact on the general health care delivery system (definition of health service marketing areas, improved communication and transportation, demonstration of the hospital-community interface). A review is presented of Federal agencies concerned with emergency health services: Department of Transportation, Office of Education, Appalachia Regional Commission, Bureau of Health Manpower Education, Department of Defense, Department of Health, Education and Welfare (Division of Emergency Health Services, Office of Comprehensive Health Planning, Health Facilities Planning and Construction Service, National Center for Health Services Research and Development, Regional Medical Programs Services), and other Federal programs related to emergency medical services (Office of Emergency Preparedness, Office of Civil Defense, Coast Guard, Office of Economic Opportunity). A new Federal agency or coordinating group is proposed to combine the activities of the various Federal agencies in the emergency health services field, and serve as the nucleus for establishing effective state and local relationships. It is also suggested that an academic center be established to serve as a clearinghouse for relevant literature, to conduct special studies, to offer expertise in the field, and to review existing and planned programs throughout the U.S. At the state level, there are decision-making, programming, and planning sources that can be coordinated as a focus for emergency health services development at the community level. The effort may be advanced by the establishment of a new type of medical specialist, one concerned with linking community emergency health service systems with hospital emergency rooms.

Fire Spread in High Density High-Rise Buildings: Final Report

Abstract: Abstract : The program had the objective of developing a computer routine to determine the initiation and spread of fire in high density high-rise areas following a nuclear detonation, and its effects on the street environment. The result of this endeavor is a computer code that evaluates the probable number and floor locations of fires, the rate of heat generation from built-up areas, the radiant intensities in the streets, and the induced winds as functions of time. Provisions were made to keep the code sufficiently flexible to allow for improved data and information as they become available. Also, provisions were made to simplify the problem of incorporating the routine in a more general code for an entire urban area. Preliminary calculations were conducted to gain an appreciation of how the fires develop in time, the threats to personnel in the streets and the possibility of a fire storm.