Psychology Support International

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Psychology Support International

• Psychological First Aid and Triage Preparedness
  for Critical Incident and Disaster Response
• www.psycorps.net

Glenn T. Goodwin, PhD, DABFE, DABPS,
FABMPPPresident/FounderJohn Thoburn, PhD,
ABPPCo-Founder
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Recent Historical Background

• The tsunami was a major critical incident of epic
  proportions, unexpected (scientists discounted a
  tsunami in the Indian Ocean region of the world),
  and unprepared for as a result.
• However, scientists now agree that another
  tsunami is likely, the only question is when.
• Further, on average, natural and technological
  disasters kill 50,000 people each year. An
  additional 74,000 are seriously injured, 5
  million are displaced from their homes, and over
  80 million are affected in some way by the
  effects of earthquakes, hurricanes/typhoons,
  floods, high winds, landslides, technological
  accidents, and urban fires (World Disaster
  Report, International Federation of Red Cross and
  Red Crescent Societies, 1999)

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The Reason for PsyCorps

• In the weeks and months following major
  disasters, long after the initial stabilization
  of medical and social relief efforts are in
  place, and the media attention tapers off, there
  exists an emerging, long-term effort in dealing
  with the psychosocial effects of death, injury,
  grief and loss.

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The Reason for PsyCorps

• However, the global provision of mental health
  care varies in its organization and effectiveness
  from region to region, often being reactive
  rather than proactive.
• Furthermore, to be effective, psychological first
  aid must be culturally sensitive and relevant.

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The Reason for PsyCorps

• We realize that Western psychology must be
  locally interpreted to be relevant or appropriate
  in many regions of the world.
• While other relief organizations seek to provide
  outside service to survivors of disaster, it is
  PsyCorps mission to help regions prone to
  natural or man made disaster create and develop
  their own teams to provide psychological first
  aid services directly to survivors, first
  responders and caregivers in the aftermath of
  critical incidents and disaster.

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The Vision of PsyCorps

• The vision of PsyCorps is to create a global
  community of culturally indigenous psychological
  support teams that are inter-connected and
  prepared beforehand to respond to the acute and
  long-term psychological effects of disaster
  survivors, first responders and caregivers.

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Disaster Response Acute Emergency Phase

• The Primary Echelon of Disaster Support
• Dealing with disaster induced deprived physical
  needs
• Food, shelter, physical security, water,
  sanitation
• Access to health care
• Management of communicable diseases
• The focus and mission of the well-recognized
  disaster relief organizations and NGOs
• Bulletin of the World Health Organization,
  Jan 2005, 83 (1)

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Disaster Response Crisis and Post-Acute
Emergency Phase

• The Secondary Echelon of Disaster Support
• Implementing culturally sensitive psychological
  first aid
• Having local, community-based psychological
  support teams (chapters) in place, trained and
  able to be mobilized to
• Providing direct care to survivors
• Providing secondary care to first responders and
  care-givers
• Bulletin of the World Health Organization,
  Jan 2005, 83 (1)

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Definitions Critical Incident

• Critical incidents (disaster) may be seen to
  reside along a continuum of scope from
• macro (disaster affecting the entire country
  such as war, terrorism or catastrophic natural
  disaster-volcano, tsunami) to,
• meso (disaster affecting a region such as a
  airline crash, earthquake, flood,
  typhoon/hurricane, earthquake), to,
• micro (discrete disasters affecting a locale
  such as an automobile accident or fire).

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Definitions Preparedness

• Preparedness planning must address the
  psychosocial needs of both survivors and
  caregivers involved in critical incident and
  disaster.
• A locale, region or countrys system of critical
  incident preparedness can only be as effective as
  the capacity for emergency, rescue and caregiver
  personnel to remain emotionally healthy and
  effective in dealing with their own stress and
  strain from interaction with the critical
  incident.

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Needs Assessment

• There is a general lack of organized
  psychological first aid provided to disaster
  responders.
• Crisis workers and caregivers often feel the
  cumulative effects of stress, including burn-out
  or compassion fatigue.
• The international PsyCorps assessment suggests
  that there is a major need for additional
  resources and services dedicated to managing
  caregiver stress.

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Needs Assessment

• Humanitarian assistance programs are often
  uncoordinated, resulting in an adverse effect on
  service recipients.
• Cross cultural issues of humanitarian assistance
  and applicability are often overlooked.
• Culturally indigenous, psychological support
  teams are rarely trained, organized and
  coordinated before a disaster strikes, affecting
  the timeliness of trauma response and quality of
  service.

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Problem Statement

• Many survivors, responders and caregivers of
  natural and man made critical incidents and
  disaster do not receive adequate attention to
  manage traumatic stress or compassion fatigue.
  The result has been
• Survivors are more prone to developing PTSD
• Caregivers are less effective than they might be
• Caregivers are more easily burned out.
• Civic, business and commerce suffers due to
  decreased employee productivity and mental health
  related absences and attrition.

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Recommendations

• That the government, civic and business community
  and NGOs should support posttraumatic stress
  reduction services to survivors, first responders
  and caregivers.
• We recommend the development of Psychological
  Support Teams that are in place, trained and
  ready for effective and timely mobilization if
  and when major critical incidents occur. We
  suggest that these teams be comprised of locals
  to ensure culturally appropriate interventions.
• We support the World Health Organization
  recommendation that alleviating psychological
  distress and strengthening resiliency must be
  an integral part of humanitarian assistance,
  (January 2005). By effectively integrating
  disaster mental health into broader humanitarian
  assistance programs, recipients will receive
  continuous care and greater service
  accessibility.

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Why do we need Psychological Support Teams?

• Mental health preparedness and aid has tended to
  be reactive and unorganized, rather than
  pre-planned and responsive.
• Mental health preparedness and aid, in
  particular, needs to reflect the culture and
  values of the region.
• Mental health resources need to be available to
  first responders and crisis workers as well as
  survivors.

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Project Goals

• The overall goal of PsyCorps is to ensure that
  culturally appropriate and accessible critical
  incident psychological support is available for
  the community at large. The following are the
  specific goals of the program.
• Provide Development Consultation a step-by-step
  framework for implementing regional psychological
  support teams experienced in emergency and
  disaster response
• Provide team training and education in Flexible
  Psychological First Aid (FPFA)
• Provide one-on-one FPFA support for survivors of
  critical incidents and disaster
• Provide FPFA for responders and caregivers
  involved in critical incidents and disaster

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Project Synopsis

• PsyCorps International will establish PsyCorps
  Psychological Support Teams.
• The Teams will be local volunteers, known as
  befrienders, trained in Flexible Psychological
  First Aid (FPFA) and Triage to provide trauma
  support services to survivors, first responders
  and caregivers involved in critical incidents and
  disaster.
• Team development will include identifying an
  administrative core composed of project manager,
  clinical supervisor/director (licensed or
  certified mental health professional), liaison
  and administrative assistant.

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Mission Statement

• The mission of PsyCorps is to provide
  consultation and support in the development of
  international Psychological Support Teams that
  are
• Organized and prepared to respond to critical
  incidents and disaster
• Trained in Flexible Psychological First Aid
  (FPFA) and Triage
• Composed of nationals
• Prepared to collaborate with civic and
  governmental agencies, emergency services,
  relevant health care services and other involved
  NGOs

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The PsyCorps Paradigm Flexible Psychological
First Aid (FPFA)

• The PsyCorps model offers a flexible, multimodal
  approach for the provision of psychological first
  aid and triage interventions. This model is
  called Flexible Psychological First Aid FPFA

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Flexible Psychological First Aid (FPFA)

• Following disaster, there are numerous complex
  mental health issues and situations that emerge.
  We realize, based on clinical experience and
  accumulating research, that one model may be
  better suited than another for a given aspect of
  a critical incident.
• The FPFA model draws from a spectrum of crisis
  intervention approaches to implement the most
  efficacious and appropriate strategy for a given
  situation.
• Psychological support after disaster should
  emanate from a strengths based perspective with
  intervention and mental health assistance
  focusing on positive coping strategies.

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Flexible Psychological First Aid (FPFA)

• The FPFA model focuses on
• protection from future harm
• current needs and concerns
• practical assistance such as providing direction
• assistance for connecting to loved ones
• information resources and availability of
  additional support
• acute care
• psychological triage
• death notification

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PsyCorps Psychology support international

• Addressing the Posttraumatic Consequences of
  Natural and Man-made Disasters
• Global network of Psychological Support Teams,
  organized, trained and prepared in advance, for
  response and management of the psychosocial
  aftermath of critical Incidents and disaster
• Indigenous to Each Culture
• Primary Mission Providing Flexible Psychological
  First Aid (FPFA) and Triage for
• Survivors
• First responders
• Caregivers