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18 - Uniformed Rescue Workers Responding to Disaster

from Part Four - Special Groups

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 May 2010

By
Shannon E. Mccaslin ,
Sabra S. Inslicht ,
Clare Henn-Haase ,
Claude Chemtob ,
Thomas J. Metzler ,
Thomas C. Neylan  and
Charles R. Marmar
Edited by
Yuval Neria ,
Sandro Galea  and
Fran H. Norris
Yuval Neria
Affiliation:
Columbia University, New York
Sandro Galea
Affiliation:
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Fran H. Norris
Affiliation:
Dartmouth Medical School, New Hampshire
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Summary

This chapter explains the potential impact of disaster response on uniformed first responders, including police officers and firefighters. A minority of responders may continue to experience psychological distress following disaster response, including symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, alcohol use, and other anxiety disorders. Trauma-exposed first responders are also at risk of developing other psychiatric symptoms and conditions such as depression, substance abuse, and other anxiety disorders. Degree and type of interaction with survivors and bereaved family members are linked to the level of distress among rescue workers. Peritraumatic reactions are shown to be strongly associated with PTSD symptoms. The participants receiving the cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) treatment showed a significantly greater decline in PTSD symptoms, with large effect sizes. Promising strategies for immediate management of acute stress disorders include the use of adrenaline-blocking medications and cognitive behaviorally informed antipanic interventions for peritraumatic distress.

Keywords

behavioral psychotherapeuticscognitive psychotherapeuticsdisasterpsychopathologyposttraumatic stress disordermental healthmental illness
Type
Chapter
Information
Mental Health and Disasters , pp. 302 - 318
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2009

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