東日本大震災における岩手県での被災地支援―取り組みの現状と課題

Current conditions and issues facing disaster relief work in the areas of Iwate Prefecture affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake

　2011年3月11日14時46分，地震の発生とそれに伴う津波による未曾有の大災害が岩手県をも襲った．県士会として会員の安否確認から被害が甚大だった沿岸市町村への支援活動の取り組みは，未体験な事態だけにまさに無我夢中，試行錯誤しながらの活動だった．

　当初の活動は，各市町村で活動する医療保健チームのミーティングへの参加と保健担当課への訪問による避難所のニーズ把握と必要な支援の実践であった．仮設住宅に移行してからは，介護保険事業所や施設職員を対象とした言語障害，摂食・嚥下障害の普及・啓発活動と失語症者の集いの場づくり，発達障害を含む言語障害児・者とその家族の支援に取り組んでいる．

　言語聴覚士として，また岩手県言語聴覚士会として，どのような支援が求められ，どのような支援ができたのか，これまで行ってきた活動の現状と課題について報告する．

　At 14:46 on March 11, 2011, a great earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit Iwate Prefecture causing a huge and unprecedented disaster.　Our support actions centered on confirming the safety of our members, and helping people in the worst hit coastal area.　The situation was far worse than anyone could have imagined, and we worked intensely, with much trial and error, to support the victims of the disaster.　The initial support activities included participating in the meetings of the medical health teams in each of the cities, visiting the health officials to find out the needs of the people at the evacuees' shelters, and providing support when and where we could.　After the people had moved into temporary housing, we tried to promote better understanding of speech, language, and swallowing disorders among facility staff members.　We also set up a cozy gathering place for aphasic patients, and supported children with developmental disabilities and their families.

　I report the results of my work as a member of Iwate Speech-Language-Hearing Therapist Association, including the kinds of request we received and how we responded.