Schools may serve as shelters in the event of a disaster, but little is known about the requirements of children with disabilities in such situations. This study, therefore, aimed to investigate disaster preparedness in Japanese special needs schools depending on the designation of welfare shelters.

A questionnaire was distributed to schools nationwide. The respondents (authorities from 531 schools) answered questions about their jobs, disaster experiences, the school type, its students’ disabilities, its designation as a welfare shelter, its evacuation readiness, and the items of a disaster prevention awareness scale. Differences in preparedness among schools and the relationship between preparedness and designation as a welfare shelter were determined.

Most respondents had never experienced a natural disaster. Schools had insufficient resources to cope with disasters. While the majority (68.2%) had resources for children to stay overnight, a substantial minority of schools (31.8%) did not. No differences were found in preparedness among schools with different types of children with disabilities. Schools designated as welfare shelters were significantly better prepared than others.

Special needs schools in Japan have limited disaster preparedness. The designation of schools as welfare shelters may increase their preparedness for disasters.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of residents who are knowledgeable about the schools used as shelters.

The target group was comprised of teachers and guardians of children enrolled in 4 schools, which were selected in the vicinity of District B, which was severely damaged by heavy rain in 2014. A qualitative descriptive study design was used.

The number of surveys collected was 1702 (collection rate 62.2%). A total of 1017 clauses were entered, and 85 codes were generated for 7 categories. The guardians and teachers believed that there was a discrepancy between shelter capacity and the real situation; citing a lack of information, and ill preparedness of the schools for disasters as some of the problems. Based on the knowledge and experiences from previous disasters, they responded that there was inadequate management, and evacuees faced difficulty living comfortably in the shelters.

In order to use school facilities during any disaster, it is important for residents to recognize the need to solve problems, and to work with local governments to support improvements. This realization reveals a sense of ownership of emergency shelters and prevents confusion among residents. Also, this will help people to prepare for disasters and prevent disruption during evacuation.

Major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD), and schizophrenia (SCZ) are associated with impaired intelligence that predicts poor functional outcomes. However, little is known regarding the extent and severity of intelligence decline, that is, decreased present intelligence quotient (IQ) relative to premorbid levels, across psychiatric disorders and which clinical characteristics affect the decline.

Premorbid IQ, present IQ, and intelligence decline were compared across patients with MDD (n = 45), BD (n = 30), and SCZ (n = 139), and healthy controls (HCs; n = 135). Furthermore, we investigated which factors contribute to the intelligence decline in each diagnostic group.

Significant differences were observed in premorbid IQ, present IQ, and intelligence decline across the diagnostic groups. Patients with each psychiatric disorder displayed lower premorbid and present IQ and more intelligence decline than HCs. Patients with SCZ displayed lower premorbid and present IQ and more intelligence decline than patients with MDD and BD, while there were no significant differences between patients with MDD and BD. When patients with BD were divided based on bipolar I disorder (BD-I) and bipolar II disorder (BD-II), degrees of intelligence decline were similar between MDD and BD-II and between BD-I and SCZ. Lower educational attainment was correlated with a greater degree of intelligence decline in patients with SCZ and BD but not MDD.

These findings confirm that although all psychiatric disorders display intelligence decline, the severity of intelligence decline differs across psychiatric disorders (SCZ, BD-I > BD-II, MDD > HCs). Higher educational attainment as cognitive reserve contributes to protection against intelligence decline in BD and SCZ.

In Japan, after an earthquake, or when there is a heavy downpour, transportation is affected and guardians of children may not be able to reach home in time from the office. In elementary schools, because the guardian is unable to come and pick up the child, the teacher needs to ensure that the children are protected, and therefore, bears enormous responsibility. Since commuting times to work are long, guardians need to instate measures for the safety of their children.

This study aims to clarify guardians’ recognition of children’s safety in the event of a disaster, and examine the corresponding challenge they face in terms of commuting distance.

The subjects are 2,181 guardians of children in four elementary schools near places where landslides had occurred in Hiroshima city in 2014. The questionnaires distributed throughout the school produced 1,027 valid responses. Guardians were divided based on commuting distance into two groups; one of whom were within 3-km commuting distance and the other of more than 3 km. The two groups were compared for their recognition of children’s safety using a chi-square test.

Children’s safety in school was a concern for 73.9% of guardians. The safety of school buildings in case of a disaster was a cause of concern for 80% of guardians who are close commuters, and 73.9% of guardians whose commute distance is longer (P = 0.015). The fact that children cannot return home was a cause of worry for 33.9% of guardians whose workplace is nearby, and for 29.9% whose workplace was distant (P=0.044).

Most parents, especially guardians going to work far away, do not recognize that they cannot reach home, and therefore, need to think about providing safety measures for their children in the disaster.

Japan is known worldwide as an earthquake-prone country, and large-scale landslide disasters have occurred frequently in recent years. Early preparation is essential for taking precise action in case of an emergency. People with disaster experience are often discussed in the importance of evacuation drills. However, most people have no disaster experience, so awareness of disaster countermeasures is desirable for non-experienced people.

To clarify the concerns of non-experienced people and consider how to strengthen disaster measures as an evacuation drill host or educator.

From February to March 2018, we enrolled teachers and parents whose children attend Hiroshima City Elementary School. Based on disaster experiences, we divided them into two groups, non-experienced and experienced, and a comparison of measures was performed between them. We used SPSS ver.22 and did a chi-square test.

There were 1,702 valid responses (145 teachers and 1,557 parents); 1,406 were non-experienced, and 289 were experienced. The issues both groups were most concerned about were “children’s safety at school” (non-experienced 61.7%, experienced 57.3%), “securing food and drink at school” (39.0%, 3.3.9%), “acceptance and distribution of relief supplies” (28.1%, 2.6.6%), and “resident evacuation” (25.4%, 2.4.0%). The experienced were most concerned with “children’s mental care” (60.2%), and the non-experienced were most concerned with “children’s safety at school” (61.7%).

Regardless of experience, parents tend to be deeply concerned about all things pertaining to their children. Physical safety, as well as psychological needs, were of high importance. For non-experienced, we should develop interest by focusing on children’s needs when writing manuals for disaster measures and evacuation drills. Therefore, future projects to strengthen awareness of disaster prevention for the non-experienced should focus on three key issues: “step-by-step approaches for children,” “physiological needs,” and “safety of schools and shelters.”