Enhancing Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Planning by Developing Community-based Capacities for Psychological First Aid and Basic Life Support Skills (original) (raw)
Related papers
Assessment of Need and Readiness for a Post-Disaster Psychological First Aid Course in Barbados
World Cultural Psychiatry Research Review, 2024
This study was conducted to assess the readiness and need of community personnel to be trained to deliver psychological first aid (PFA). The assessment of readiness qualitatively measured knowledge of PFA, engagement in health-related matters, available resources, and community engagement. Need for training was determined by the frequency of responses to disaster scenarios and the level of self-efficacy during the response. The survey was constructed in REDCap and disseminated to leaders and members of faith-based organizations, educational institutions, healthcare facilities and district emergency offices. Data was collected during November and December 2021, and summary statistics were performed within REDCap. The review of the collected data revealed most respondents had never heard of PFA; however, they intuitively performed key elements of PFA such as listening and assessing need. The majority engaged in health-related matters by either hosting or attending health seminars. Some respondents had training or experience in responding to natural disasters, and could access physical resources (e.g., safe counseling spaces). Participants reported positive relationships with surrounding communities, describing them as respectful and cooperative. There were frequent opportunities to respond to emergencies (e.g., hurricanes and domestic violence), however, the majority did not feel fully prepared to do so. Over 90% agreed they would attend a PFA course. This study demonstrated the need and readiness for community members to be trained to administer PFA. Additionally, responses highlighted untapped potential within the community and a need to harness these resources for rapid mobilization for disaster response.
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, 2012
ABSTRACTObjective: The Advisory Council of the American Red Cross Disaster Services requested that an independent study determine whether first-aid providers without professional mental health training, when confronted with people who have experienced a traumatic event, offer a “safe, effective and feasible intervention.”Methods: Standard databases were searched by an expert panel from 1990 to September 2010 using the keyword phrase “psychological first aid.” Documents were included if the process was referred to as care provided to victims, first responders, or volunteers and excluded if it was not associated with a disaster or mass casualty event, or was used after individual nondisaster traumas such as rape and murder. This search yielded 58 citations.Results: It was determined that adequate scientific evidence for psychological first aid is lacking but widely supported by expert opinion and rational conjecture. No controlled studies were found. There is insufficient evidence sup...
… : Research and Practice, 2008
"Professional psychologists are called upon to deal with a broad array of crises and traumatic events. However, training and expertise in crisis response varies widely among practitioners, and there has been considerable controversy about the value of widely disseminated mental health crisis intervention protocols that include “debriefing” as an essential feature. This article gives an overview of the developmental process, guiding principles, and core actions of the Psychological First Aid Field Operations Guide (PFA Guide), which provides guidance for practitioners in responding to immediate mental health needs of children, adults, and families who have recently experienced a disaster or terrorist event. Issues in training, provider self-care, and evaluation research are also presented. The PFA Guide presents approaches thought to be most consistently supported by current research and practice so that they can be taught, used, and evaluated in field settings. Although we expect further refinement as more systematic research becomes available, the PFA Guide represents a sustained collaborative effort to define current evidence-informed best practices that can be utilized now by practitioners involved in disaster mental health responses. Keywords: psychological first aid, crisis intervention, disaster mental health, best practices, disaster mental health training"
Community First Aid Training for Disaster Preparedness: A Review of Education Content
KnE Life Sciences, 2022
Disasters pose a substantial risk to people’s health and well-being on a global scale. Community-based training on the initial response to traffic accidents has a considerable impact on reducing morbidity and mortality. There is no information on the most effective type of community-based training for such incidents or on how to integrate this into disaster response. The goal of this study was to characterize the content of first aid training and its effect on providing assistance during a disaster. The MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were searched. The terms ”basic life support” OR ”bleed control” OR ”cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)” OR ”first aid” AND ”bystander” OR ”layperson” OR ”public” were used. We chose the general public as our sample. We included only publications that were available in English and published between January 2000 and September 2021 due to time and resource constraints. Four of the included studies were conducted in the United Sta...
Innovations in disaster mental health: Psychological first aid
Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 2008
Psychological First Aid (PFA) consists of a systematic set of helping actions aimed at reducing initial post-trauma distress and supporting short-and long-term adaptive functioning. Designed as an initial component of a comprehensive disaster/trauma response, PFA is constructed around eight core actions: contact and engagement, safety and comfort, stabilization, information gathering, practical assistance, connection with social supports, information on coping support, and linkage with collaborative services. PFA for children and adolescents focuses on these same core actions, with modifications to make them developmentally appropriate. Formal evaluation of the effectiveness of PFA is needed and it is hoped that development of a PFA Field Operations Guide will facilitate such evaluation.
US-China Education Review B
Indonesia has a high potential for disaster based on geographical location, one of which is Sajen village located at Mojokerto Regency in East Java. Sajen village has high-hazard suffered disasters, such as landslides, flash floods, and high winds. Disasters that have occurred cause the impact of casualties, damage to settlements, the source of life of the population, psychological problems, and social (high-risk). The tough (tangguh) village disaster program based on psychological first-aid applied to 100 students to improve disaster capacity through disaster education as an effort to reduce risk. So far, no disaster education program has been implemented based on psychological first-aid for students. This paper will describe the action research implementation of disaster education for students covering physical health training that is knowledge of potential disaster, self-preservation, and survival from disaster. Psychological health is the ability of psychological recovery during or after disasters. Behavioral health ability can empower themselves and communities economically, socially, and culturally, or other areas of life and healthy behavior during and after the disaster. Outcomes of disaster education programs include increased knowledge and psychological first-aid capabilities, handbooks of disaster education based on psychological first-aid, psychological first-aid, and sustainable disaster education programs. The results of the implementation of disaster education related to physical health, psychological health, and behavioral health are discussed further.
Aggression and Violent Behavior, 2008
There is a general recognition that in many instances there will be an adverse psychological consequence associated with disasters, and that this adverse consequence may be manifest within primary victims, as well as rescuers and other disaster response personnel. There is less agreement, however, on what should be done, if anything, to formally address the putative mental health issues post-disaster. This paper reports on the results of an 18-month consensus building process wherein the Early Psychological Intervention Subcommittee (EPI) of the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) formulated recommendations on the nature of disaster mental health interventions and, what, if any, specialized training should individuals receive in preparation to perform early psychological intervention in the wake of disasters? Consensus was reached that there was value in the provision of disaster mental health services, that specialized training to provide such services was requisite, and that the nature of such services should be consistent with an integrated continuum of mental health care.
Community-based Disaster Preparedness; A Training Program Based on Needs Assessment
Health in Emergencies & Disasters Quarterly (HDQ), 2025
Background: This study aimed to develop an educational program to address the basic educational needs of community-based health organizations (CBHOs) or non-government organizations (NGOs) in Iran involved in disaster management. Materials and Methods: This qualitative study was conducted in two phases: a) Identifying the basic educational needs of CBHOs/NGOs before participating in disaster management through interviews with 25 key informants from Isfahan, Iran, and b) Validating the components by conducting focus group discussions with key informants and designing the educational program. Results: We extracted two main themes (goals): 1) Recognizing the conceptual foundations of CBHOs/NGOs with three categories (objectives) of “role and social status”, “structures”, and “practical approaches”, and 2) Attention to social determinants of health (SDH) with nine categories of “culture of safety”, “social responsibility”, “social cohesion”, “addiction prevention plans”, “women’s needs”, “mental health”, “ethical standards”, “ morale improvement”, and “communication skills”. The educational program was elaborated by specifying the syllabuses, educational strategies/teaching methods, target groups, duration, and budget for each objective. Conclusion: The educational program can be used to increase CBHOs/NGOs’ skills and knowledge, help them coordinate their actions, and adapt their responses to the diverse needs and preferences of the community.
Background: Nowadays, disaster preparedness and responses are essential for everyone to be involved since the disaster becomes increasing. The Community Health Volunteers (CHVs) in particular are the key partners required adequately prepared in emergency care during disaster event. Purpose: The study aims to examine the essential knowledge and skills of emergency care during natural disaster for CHVs. Method: The reviews published during 2000 and 2011 searching from PubMed, Science Direct, CINAHL, ProQuest Medical Library were conducted. Result: Twenty-four articles and documents related to community-based disaster preparedness programs were intensively reviewed. Based on the review, six components of knowledge and skills for emergency care in natural disaster for CHVs are required including 1) early warning, 2) disaster triage, 3) first aid, 4) search and rescue, 5) logistic and communication, and 6) team organizations. Conclusion: There was a few studies focusing on the emergency ...