Dr. Natasha Gill, MD, MPH, FAAP discusses disaster preparedness for families. Dr. Gill, a pediatric emergency physician, shares her experiences with various disasters and emphasizes the importance of preparing a disaster kit. Key tips include knowing local risks, creating a go-bag with essentials (water, food, first aid, and cash), and involving children in preparedness plans. For families with special needs, she advises keeping essential medications and documents, and using accessible strategies to build and maintain disaster supplies over time.

Natasha Gill, MD, MPH, FAAP, is Pediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM) faculty and the Emergency Department (ED) Co-Director of Disaster Management at the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles (CHLA). She is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics (“Traditional Research Track”) for the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine.

Resources

• Disaster Preparedness for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs - American Academy of Pediatrics
• Policy statement--emergency information forms and emergency preparedness for children with special health care needs - National Library of Medicine
• Disaster Safety for People with Disabilities - America Red Cross
• Emergency Kit Checklist for Kids and Families - CDC
• Emergency Kit Checklist for Families with Children and Youth with Special Healthcare Needs (CYSHCN) - CDC
• Build a Kit - Ready.gov
• People with Disabilities