The Positive Influence of Individual-Level Disaster Preparedness on the Odds of Individual-Level Pandemic Preparedness-Insights from FEMA's 2021-2023 National Household Survey.

OBJECTIVE

To explore the possible association and trends between individual-level disaster preparedness status (for natural, technological, and human-caused hazards) and the level of pandemic preparedness during the COVID-19 pandemic among adults in the U.S. from 2021 through 2023.

METHODS

Multivariate logistic regression was conducted using data from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) annual National Household Survey (NHS) from 2021 to 2023 to identify statistically significant variables associated with personal pandemic preparedness behavior among participants of the nationally representative survey during the COVID-19 pandemic.

RESULTS

Overall, the results showed that the proportion of respondents that were considered prepared for a pandemic peaked in 2021 (54.0%) and steadily decreased in the following years (2022: 43.3%; 2023: 41.3%) highlighting the need for pandemic preparedness resources and educational campaigns to be available prior to a pandemic occurring. The final multivariate logistic regression models featuring consistent significant covariates demonstrated a highly statistically significant relationship between individual-level disaster preparedness and pandemic preparedness across all three study years (2021: odds ratio (OR): 21.35, standard error (SE): 2.59, p < 0.001; 2022: OR: 9.26, SE: 0.87, p < 0.001; 2023: OR: 6.75, SE: 0.59, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The significant results suggest individuals who are prepared for a disaster have higher odds of being prepared for a pandemic. These findings support the continued increase in collaboration between emergency management and public health entities to jointly support the development of evidence-based resources to increase personal preparedness for both disasters and pandemics.