Major Incidents, Pandemics and Mental Health The Psychosocial Aspects of Health Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters and Disease Outbreaks
Book contents
- Major Incidents, Pandemics and Mental Health
- Major Incidents, Pandemics and Mental Health
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Boxes
- Contributors
- Foreword by Dr Adrian James
- Foreword by Professor David Lockey
- Section 1 The Nature and Impacts of Twenty-First-Century Healthcare Emergencies
- Chapter 1 Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters, Disease Outbreaks, and Mental Health
- Chapter 2 How the World Views Trauma and Trauma Care
- Chapter 3 How the World Views the Mental Health Implications of Traumatic Events, Major Incidents, and Serious Contagious Diseases
- Chapter 4 Two Personal Perspectives on Trauma and Recovery
- Chapter 5 How Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters, and Disease Outbreaks Affect People and Healthcare Practitioners
- Chapter 6 The Impact of Emergencies, Terrorism, and Disease on Children and Their Families
- Chapter 7 The Impacts of Urbanising the World’s Population on Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters, and Disease Outbreaks
- Chapter 8 Myths About Disasters
- Chapter 9 Primary and Secondary Stressors
- Chapter 10 The Differing Challenges Posed by Big Bang, Rising Tide, and Longer-Term Incidents Affecting Local and Dispersed Populations
- Chapter 11 Mental Health in the Context of Multiple Exposures to Disasters
- Chapter 12 The Common Ground in the Mental Health Impacts of Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters, Disease Outbreaks, and Conflict, and a Framework for Responding to People’s Needs
- Section 2 Clinical Aspects of Traumatic Injuries, Epidemics, and Pandemics
- Section 3 The Role of the Public in Emergencies: Survivors, Bystanders, and Volunteers
- Section 4 Responses to Meet the Mental Health Needs of People Affected by Emergencies, Major Incidents, and Pandemics
- Section 5 Sustaining and Caring for Staff During Emergencies
- Section 6 Designing, Leading, and Managing Responses to Emergencies and Pandemics
- Section 7 Key Lessons for the Way Forward
- A Glossary of Selected Key Terms Used in This Book
- Index
- References
Chapter 8 - Myths About Disasters
from Section 1 - The Nature and Impacts of Twenty-First-Century Healthcare Emergencies
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 11 January 2024
Book contents
- Major Incidents, Pandemics and Mental Health
- Major Incidents, Pandemics and Mental Health
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Boxes
- Contributors
- Foreword by Dr Adrian James
- Foreword by Professor David Lockey
- Section 1 The Nature and Impacts of Twenty-First-Century Healthcare Emergencies
- Chapter 1 Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters, Disease Outbreaks, and Mental Health
- Chapter 2 How the World Views Trauma and Trauma Care
- Chapter 3 How the World Views the Mental Health Implications of Traumatic Events, Major Incidents, and Serious Contagious Diseases
- Chapter 4 Two Personal Perspectives on Trauma and Recovery
- Chapter 5 How Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters, and Disease Outbreaks Affect People and Healthcare Practitioners
- Chapter 6 The Impact of Emergencies, Terrorism, and Disease on Children and Their Families
- Chapter 7 The Impacts of Urbanising the World’s Population on Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters, and Disease Outbreaks
- Chapter 8 Myths About Disasters
- Chapter 9 Primary and Secondary Stressors
- Chapter 10 The Differing Challenges Posed by Big Bang, Rising Tide, and Longer-Term Incidents Affecting Local and Dispersed Populations
- Chapter 11 Mental Health in the Context of Multiple Exposures to Disasters
- Chapter 12 The Common Ground in the Mental Health Impacts of Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters, Disease Outbreaks, and Conflict, and a Framework for Responding to People’s Needs
- Section 2 Clinical Aspects of Traumatic Injuries, Epidemics, and Pandemics
- Section 3 The Role of the Public in Emergencies: Survivors, Bystanders, and Volunteers
- Section 4 Responses to Meet the Mental Health Needs of People Affected by Emergencies, Major Incidents, and Pandemics
- Section 5 Sustaining and Caring for Staff During Emergencies
- Section 6 Designing, Leading, and Managing Responses to Emergencies and Pandemics
- Section 7 Key Lessons for the Way Forward
- A Glossary of Selected Key Terms Used in This Book
- Index
- References
Summary
Disasters are much misunderstood events, with misassumptions being common currency in popular culture, mass media, and even professional walks of life. We term these the myths of disasters for convenience. Rather than absolute errors of perception, they represent statistical generalisations about what is unlikely to happen in calamity. That people panic is perhaps the most common and enduring myth of all. Panic is a transient phenomenon that occurs only in specific circumstances. Looting, a measure of the breakdown of social order, is also uncommon, although it may occur where preconditions for it exist. Like other misconceptions, these myths fit easily into the ‘Hollywood model’ derived from highly stylised disaster movies. This model is countered by the therapeutic community that sociologists have found in post-disaster settings. Better education and more responsible reporting could do much to reduce beliefs in inaccurate portrayals of the phenomenon.
Keywords
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- Major Incidents, Pandemics and Mental HealthThe Psychosocial Aspects of Health Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters and Disease Outbreaks, pp. 36 - 41Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2024
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