Hospitalizations for Substance Abuse Disorders Before and After Hurricane Katrina: Spatial Clustering and Area-Level Predictors, New Orleans, 2004 and 2008

Abstract

Geographic patterns of hospitalizations for substance abuse disorders shifted in post-Katrina New Orleans from flood-exposed areas to less exposed areas in the center of the city; however, poverty was a main predictor for hospitalizations during both periods. Approaches used in this study are generalizable to other disaster areas and to other psychological vulnerabilities (eg, anxiety).