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The Assessment of Post-Earthquake Quality of Life of Earthquake Survivors

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 January 2025

Metin Dincer Open the ORCID record for Metin Dincer [Opens in a new window] ,
Mesut Akyol ,
Yunus Emre Karatas  and
Mustafa Kocakaya Open the ORCID record for Mustafa Kocakaya [Opens in a new window]
Metin Dincer
Affiliation:
Department of Health Management, Ankara Yildirim Beyazit University, Ankara, Türkiye
Mesut Akyol
Affiliation:
Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, Ankara Yildirim Beyazit University, Ankara, Türkiye
Yunus Emre Karatas
Affiliation:
PhD Student in Health Care Management, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Türkiye
Mustafa Kocakaya*
Affiliation:
Department of Health Management, Ankara Yildirim Beyazit University, Ankara, Türkiye PhD Student in Health Care Management, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Türkiye
*
Corresponding authors: Mustafa Kocakaya; Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Objectives

This study aims to assess the quality of life (QoL) of earthquake survivors who experienced 2 major earthquakes in Türkiye on February 6, 2023, with different measurement tools.

Methods

The study was conducted in 2 centers with a total of 467 participants. For QoL measurement, face-to-face Euroqol EQ-5D-5L, Euroqol Visual Analog Scale (EQ-VAS), and Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) measurement tools were used.

Results

On the EQ-5D-5L scale, most of the participants stated that they struggled the most with the anxiety/Depression dimension. In NHP, the highest mean score is in the Emotional Reaction section. Females and the 55+ age group were found to have worse QoL. A linear and moderate correlation was found between the EQ-5D-5L index value and the EQ-VAS score; an inverse, weak, or moderate correlation was found between the EQ-VAS score and the sections of the NHP scores; an inverse and strong correlation was found between the Nottingham Health Profile Distress (NHP-D) score and the EQ-5D-5L index value.

Conclusions

The findings obtained with the measurement tools used in this study reveal various dimensions affecting the QoL of different cohorts. In addition, the study provides important evidence for policies to be developed to increase post-earthquake QoL.

Keywords

quality of lifeearthquake survivorsnatural disastersTürkiye Earthquake 2023
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 18 , 2024 , e338
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc.

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