The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services today announced more than $8 million in grants to support research to aid the long-term recovery in areas hit by Hurricane Sandy, the first time HHS has funded this type of work to support long-term recovery efforts.

HHS’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response will administer the grants through the Hurricane Sandy Recovery and Rebuilding Supplemental Appropriation Act of 2013.

The research will focus on physical and behavioral health aspects of recovery including community resilience, risk communication and the use of social media, health system response and healthcare access, evacuation and policy decision making and mental health.

The grants require researchers to share their findings with each other and the impacted communities.

Nine grant recipients will receive a total of approximately $5 million. The Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine will receive approximately $681,000 to examine how social networks within neighborhoods play a critical role in determining resilience to disasters for older Americans.

Other grant recipients and their study areas are: 

• American College of Emergency Physicians, Irving, Texas, will receive approximately $444,000 to study how healthcare systems were impacted negatively before, during and after Hurricane Sandy and to develop recommendations on how to strengthen healthcare systems in treating patients effectively during disasters.
• Columbia University, New York City, will receive approximately $596,000 to assess how community-level factors such as economic development, communication and social connections influence mental and behavioral health recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, plus a second grant of approximately $276,000 to assess the resilience of residents of high-rise public housing in responding to Sandy’s impact.
• New York University School of Medicine, New York City, will receive approximately $752,000 to assess the resilience and response of a complex regional healthcare system impacted by Hurricane Sandy and the evaluation of patient care during and after the disaster.
• RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif., will receive approximately $657,000 to explore how partnerships between local health departments and community-based organizations contribute to the public health system’s ability to respond to and recover from emergencies.
• University of Delaware will receive approximately $574,000 to identify critical factors that influence community resilience and use these factors to create a computer program that supports community resilience in New York City after Hurricane Sandy.
• University of Maryland will receive approximately $417,000 to determine how social connections in a community of Maryland watermen influence their individual behavior and how the behavior impacts disaster recovery after Hurricane Sandy.
• University of Pittsburgh will receive approximately $576,000 to study ways to minimize disruptions of access to primary healthcare services during recovery from major disasters, especially for at-risk populations.