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Learning From The Past and Planning For The Future
MENTAL HEALTH MOMENT June 25, 2004 "In the democracy of the dead all men at last are equal.
There is neither rank nor station nor prerogative in the republic of the grave." - John James Ingalls
Short Subjects
LINKS Rocky Mountain Region
Disaster Mental Health Institute
CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS:
Society for the Psychological Study of
Social Issues (SPSSI) Convention
June 25 - 27, 2004
Location: Washington, DC, USA
18th Conference of the International
Association of People Environment Studies
July 7 - 10, 2004
Location: Vienna, AUSTRIA17th Congress of the International Association
of Cross-Cultural Psychology (IACCP)
August 2 - 6, 2004
Location: Xi'an, CHINA
Contact: Zheng Gang
Institute of Psychology
Chinese Academy of Sciences
100101 Beijing, China
Email: iaccp2004@psych.ac.cnInternational Society of Political Psychology
27th Annual Scientific Meeting
July, 15-18, 2004
Location: Lund, Sweden
62nd Annual Conference of the
International Council of Psychologists
August 3 - 6, 2004
Location: University of Jinan
Jinan, CHINA
Contact: Dr. Natividad Dayan
Scientific Chair
99 General Ave
GSIS Village, Project 8
Quezon City, Metro Manila
01108 PHILIPPINES Telephone: 632-724-5358
Email: bereps@pacific.net.phXXVIII International Congress of Psychology
August 8 - 13, 2004
Location: Beijing, CHINA
Contact: XiaoLan FU, Deputy Director
Committee for International Cooperation
Chinese Psychological Society
Institute of Psychology
Chinese Academy of Sciences
P.O. Box 1603
Beijing 100101, China
Telephome: +86-10-6202-2071
Fax: +86-10-6202-2070
22nd Nordic Congress of Psychology:
"Psychology in a World of Change and Diversity -
Challenges for our Profession"
August 18 -20, 2004
Location: Copenhagen, DENMARK
Contact: Roal Ulrichsen, Chair
NPK2004 Organizing Committee
Danish Psychological Association
Stokholmsgade 27, DK-2100
Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
Email: bh@vanhauen.dk
FEMA Money Authorized For Brookside Fire
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) last night authorized the use of federal funds to help Utah fight the Brookside Fire burning about 10 miles northwest of St. George in Washington County. Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response, said the state’s request for federal fire management assistance was approved at about 9 p.m. Wednesday, June 16 after it was confirmed that the fire was threatening 500 homes in the Brookside Subdivision and the surrounding area. The authorization makes FEMA funding available to pay 75 percent of the state’s eligible firefighting costs under an approved grant for managing, mitigating and controlling designated fires. For Full Story, Go To: http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=12557
FEMA And The National Fire Protection Association Partner To Cut Death Rate From Rural Fires In The United States
The Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced today a joint project with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) to examine what can be done to reduce the high death rate from fire in rural America. Communities with fewer than 2,500 residents have a per capita fire death rate almost twice the national rate. "With so many lives being lost in small communities from fire, this study of the causes of rural fires and how to prevent them is an important and essential initiative," said Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response. "FEMA has a long history of project partnerships aimed to mitigate the loss of life from fire and the Department of Homeland Security is pleased be working with the NFPA in this research initiative." For Full Story, Go To: http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=12661
Group Helps Children Deal With Disaster Stress
Natural disasters like the severe storms that recently caused extensive flooding in West Virginia can be stressful for young children. A special program designed by the Church of the Brethren offers therapeutic childcare to families seeking disaster assistance. For Full Story, Go To: http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=12658
Special Report Uses National Fire Incident Reporting Data To Study Nightclub Fires In The U.S.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has issued a special report today, part of its Topical Fire Research Series, examining the incidence of nightclub fires in the U.S. and the characteristics that may make these relatively rare fires so potentially deadly. "This important issue of our Topical Fire Research Series was spurred by the tragic Rhode Island night club fire last year that killed 100 people," said Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response. "We wanted to determine what common issues might contribute to the death tolls of these fires and what role local inspections and safety codes might play." According to the report, "Nightclub Fires in 2000," developed by the National Fire Data Center, part of FEMA’s U.S. Fire Administration, there were more than 1,500 nightclub and bar fires that year, causing $46 million in property damage. The report, which studied 2000 as it was the most recent year with complete data, noted that while these constitute only a small percentage of all structure fires, they have the potential to cause high casualties due to maximum or over-capacity crowds on weekends or during live performances. For Full Story, Go To: http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=12645
Annan commends New York's Stuyvesant students on reaction to 9/11
Speaking to high school students who were among the nearest witnesses to the 11 September 2001 attack on the World Trade Center, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said no response to the terrorists’ message of hatred could be more eloquent "than the kind of multi-cultural tapestry" displayed in the school. Located just a few blocks north of ground zero, Stuyvesant High School was evacuated through heavy dust clouds after the planes hit the twin towers. "Throughout the aftermath of that unspeakably painful day, you displayed exceptional character and courage," the Secretary-General said in his commencement address at the 100-year-old public school. "You are living proof of how grace and dignity can overcome adversity and how strength and unity can grow out of diversity," he said, adding that they came from almost as many different backgrounds as the 191 UN member countries. For Full Story, Go To: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=11127&Cr=terror&Cr1=
Food supply in Afghanistan remains unreliable, UN agency says
Unveiling figures showing that it delivered supplies to 2.1 million people across Afghanistan in the first quarter of this year, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said that the country remains heavily dependent on food aid. Briefing reporters in Kabul, WFP spokesman Maarten Roest said data indicated it has also provided food aid over the past two years to 2.5 million returning refugees at their point of entry into Afghanistan. Mr. Roest said that, although there have been "significant improvements" in food security, "Afghanistan is still in a situation where food aid has a substantive role in meeting the immediate needs of the food-insecure and in the reconstruction of the country." For Full Story, Go To: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=11142&Cr=afghanistan&Cr1=
Sudan: UN health envoy visits Darfur camps to assess humanitarian needs
An envoy from the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) is visiting the troubled Darfur region of Sudan to assess the humanitarian needs of the thousands of internally displaced people (IDPs) living in temporary camps. For Full Story, Go To: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=11145&Cr=sudan&Cr1=
Annan urges tougher action against creeping desertification
With an estimated 135 million people at risk of being driven from their land because of continuing desertification, the world must focus more on reversing this trend, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a message to mark observance of the World Day to Combat Desertification. Mr. Annan said the governments of Member States should cooperate with civil society, business and international organizations to promote more sustainable development so that land remains arable and does not become desert. For Full Story, Go To: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=11059&Cr=desert&Cr1=
So What Do We Do About Trauma?
We're at war. There's going to be trauma, lots of trauma; it's inevitable. How should we handle it? Should we have professionals come in and "debrief," ask people to talk about it and abreact, give meds, put people in therapy: individual, groups? Should we leave it up to them? Should we ignore it?
In her book published several years ago, Regeneration, Pat Barker, winner of the 1995 Booker Prize in England, recounts the story of the treatment of the war-traumatized English poet, Siegfried Sassoon. While an infantry lieutenant in the trenches in France in World War I, he wrote a letter of protest against the war. Coming from an officer, that was most improper, but he also suffered from what was then called shell shock ("And the hallucinations? The corpses in Piccadilly?"). Instead of being court-martialed, he was evacuated to a hospital-rehabilitation center back in England where soldiers were being treated for "shell shock" by a brilliant English neurologist and social anthropologist, Captain William Rivers. Rivers had developed a particular medical-psychiatric approach toward these conditions (Lancet, Feb. 2, 1918).
At that time there were many who denied the real existence of these disorders, just as General Patton did later, in World War II, when he hit the American soldier who had a traumatic war neurosis. These people did not see them as true illnesses and felt the soldiers were malingering, should be punished and forced back to duty. Rivers felt, however, that these were valid conditions requiring attention. But not too much attention, just enough as needed, no more, and then it would be best if they could resume as much of their lives as possible, even go back to duty. Deal with it but don't make too big a deal of it. For the Article, Go To: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/451173
HELPING EMPLOYEES COPE WITH AGGRESSIVE CUSTOMERS
Clerks in box stores, supermarkets and motels -- as well as waitresses, secretaries and flight attendants -- know in their hearts that the customer is NOT always right, despite what the boss might say. When exposed to pushy or irritable customers, employees in high-stress jobs need the assurance of an emotional safety net, according to a Penn State researcher. High-stress jobs with low pay and low status take both a high emotional and physical toll on employees, says Alicia A. Grandey, assistant professor of industrial-organizational psychology. What exacerbates the stress for employees is the feeling that they have nowhere to go; they simply have to take it -- or else. Read the full story at http://live.psu.edu/story/7273
(Compiled from comments, papers presented and results of panel discussions at the recent CRISES IN RURAL AMERICA Conference held in Casper, WY - April 21-24, 2004 - Fourth in a series of brief summaries of papers, comments and panel/symposium discussions.) FAMILIES AND AVIATION DISASTERS IN RURAL ENVIRONMENTS
Airline disasters, both commuter airline and larger commercial airlines, can occur at any time almost anywhere. In rural environments in the west, most communities are served by commuter or small airlines. When an airline disaster occurs in a rural community, what is the role of mental health professionals and first responders? Who works with the families of victims? What plans are in place in rural communities for handling such a disaster? For smaller engine (2, 3 or 4 passenger aviation disasters, what is your role as a first responder and/or mental health professional? What about tour planes and "Flight For Life" and ambulance aircraft?
The Aviation Disaster Family Assistance Act of 1996 requires large, scheduled airlines and air charter companies to have detailed plans for dealing with fatal aviation incidents on file with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The Act and its subsequent amendments detail specific requirements regarding what each airline's plan must contain. It describes appropriate behaviors on the part of the airlines with regards to care for families of those aboard flights involved in fatal accidents. The Act also establishes a command structure for the investigation of major air disasters. It dictates that the NTSB will designate a humanitarian aid organization to oversee the care of the emotional, physical, and spiritual needs of victims' families. The American Red Cross has been designated by the NTSB for this role.
There are smaller commercial aviation enterprises whose activities were not included in the Aviation Disaster Family Assistance Act of 1996. Among those not included are many air tour companies and non-scheduled air taxis. These companies generally fly fixed-wing airplanes and helicopters which carry fewer than ten passengers. The FAA reported that the majority of scenic airlines operate with a single aircraft, but combined, they serve as many as two million passengers during peak years. These tour aircraft frequently fly in and out of rural airports and, unfortunately, experience a considerable number of fatal crashes. Since implementation of the Act in 1996, there have been eleven fatal tour aircraft crashes in the State of Hawaii alone, all of which happened in rural areas.
Because these small companies have not been required by law to create and file plans for dealing with fatal incidents, many do not have one. When a fatal crash involving tour operators occurs, the result is often chaos. Their staffs are generally small and tightly knit. The fatal accident often results in the death of one or more employees, leaving the entire staff contaminated emotionally by the event.
In addition to the trauma of dealing with deaths of customers and/or employees, air tour proprietors recognize the incident may threaten the company's continued existence. Owners and employees of the air tour business generally express sincere desire to take care of victims' family members, but are often ignorant regarding what needs to be done. When there is no plan to follow, the company owners look to outside agencies or their insurance company for guidance. It may be a couple of days before an NTSB investigator arrives to take charge. Various jurisdictions such as the county, state, or National Park Service are normally involved with search-and-rescue and subsequent recovery of the victims' bodies. These government entities are usually unprepared to assist the flight operator in dealing with the friends and families of those who were killed or injured.
Because the American Red Cross has been designated by the NTSB as the lead agency responsible for coordinating emotional care and support of families of passengers in fatal air incidents involving larger scheduled airlines, local chapters are often called upon to provide these same services following accidents not covered by the Act. In his video presentation to the conference, Thom Curtis, Ph.D. outlined steps that can be undertaken by small non-scheduled commercial aircraft operators, local airports, various governmental jurisdictions and volunteer agencies to prepare for fatal air incidents that are not encompassed by the Aviation Disaster Family Assistance Act of 1996.
A functional response plan is a necessity and must reflect a community's unique characteristics and attributes. Rural tour operators, emergency service and humanitarian aid responders need to be as prepared as possible to assist those experiencing unexpected loss. Participants in the planning process should include:
• Air tour companies• Emergency services such as police, fire and EMTs from the local jurisdictions.
• Representatives from counties, National Parks, Indian Reservations and other relevant local governmental units.
• Airport Manager or Fixed Base Operator.
• Local Red Cross.
For a plan to be of value, it must be specific enough to provide participants with concrete tasks. It must also be flexible enough to expand or contract with the demands of the disaster.
The same basic services outlined in the Acts should be planned for and provided to families following a fatal tour aircraft accident.
Creation of a working plan depends on the cooperation of the airport management, the air tour operators, emergency service agencies, and the local American Red Cross chapter or branch.
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REFERENCES
Above represents comments, papers presented and results of panel discussions at the recent CRISES IN RURAL AMERICA Conference held in Casper, WY - April 21-24, 2004. Presenters and abstracts are located at: https://www.angelfire.com/biz/odochartaigh/rural-presenters.html
To search for books on disasters and disaster mental
health topics, leaders, leadership, orgainizations,
crisis intervention, leaders and crises, and related
topics and purchase them online, go to the following url:
https://www.angelfire.com/biz/odochartaigh/searchbooks.html
RECOMMENDED READING
Mayday! Mayday!: Aircraft Crashes in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, 1920-2000
by Jeff Wadley, Dwight McCarter
Editorial Review
From Book News, Inc.
About 50 aircraft have crashed in the Great Smoky Mountains. This book details all known incidents and rescue efforts from 1920 to 2000, including those that occurred within the area before the establishment of the park in 1934. Stories are based on official documents, newspaper archives, and interviews with survivors, family members, and eyewitnesses. B&w photos are included. Wadley is a lieutenant colonel in the Tennessee Civil Air Patrol who serves as a mission coordinator and trainer in the Smoky Mountains. McCarter served as a backcountry ranger in Great Smoky National Park for 20 years.Book News, Inc.®, Portland, OR
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Contact your local Mental Health Center or
check the yellow pages for counselors, psychologists,
therapists, and other Mental health Professionals in
your area for further information.
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Copyrighted and published by the Rocky Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Institute. No part of this document may be reproduced without written consent.The Rocky Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Newsletter is published online weekly by:
Rocky Mountain Region
Disaster Mental Health Institute, Inc.
Box 786
Laramie, WY 82073-0786
Newsletter Online: https://www.angelfire.com/biz3/news
Institute Home Page: https://www.angelfire.com/biz/odoc/rocky.html
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